Hook Up Culture

For example, after drinking alcohol, men expect to feel more powerful and aggressive (Stanford University, 1999). This increases their expectancy of certain outcomes, especially in sexual situations. Thus, drinking alcohol may cause men to misinterpret a woman's behavior as a sign of her desire to have sex with him. On the other hand, when a woman consumes alcohol, it can cause her to ignore or miss a cue that an assault is possible or likely to happen (Antonia, 1991). Alcohol can also keep a woman from realizing that her friendly behavior is being misperceived as seduction. Studies have shown that intoxicated and sober men are inclined to misperceive friendliness as a sign of sexual interest, so this is a great danger to women (Stanford University, 1999). Alcohol consumption can also decrease the likelihood that a woman can successfully resist an assault, verbally or physically. Additionally, women become intoxicated faster than men. This occurs for two reasons: women generally weigh less and have less water in their bodies than men, so the alcohol is less diluted and has a greater impact on their bodies. (Stanford University, 1999). Women do not metabolize alcohol as efficiently as men, which makes them more vulnerable to the consequences of drinking.

Of students who reported hooking up, 41 percent used words such as “regretful,” “empty,” “miserable,” “disgusted,” “ashamed,” “duped” and even “abused” to describe the experience. An additional 23 percent expressed ambivalence, and the remaining 36 percent said they were more or less “fine” with hookups — “fine” being the most common description.

Free-and-easy sex prides itself on being commitment free, no emotional ties attached. Today, this idea of leaving all emotions at the door is the supposedly, sophisticated choice on campus. It is now well understood that traditional dating in college has mostly gone the way of the landline, replaced by “hooking up”- an ambiguous term that can signify anything from making out to oral sex to intercourse - all complete without the emotional entanglement of a real relationship. As times have changed, students begin to view a relationship as “too time consuming” and something that no longer takes priority amongst their busy, high achieving schedules. However, hooking up threatens the sexual, physical, and psychological health of college-age youth. Today’s youth may want to think twice before engaging in the prevalent hook-up culture. Despite the popularity of positive feelings, hookups can include negative outcomes including emotional and psychological injury, and even more concerning consequences such as unintended rape. In order to protect our generation, and more specifically our women, society must acknowledge the detrimental effects of a hook up culture to create a greater understanding surrounding this risky sexual behavior and ensure a more powerful, positive presence for women in our society. The combination of a society seeped in rape culture and an alcohol infused hookup culture creates a compromising sexual environment where women have limited control, opening the

In his essay, “Sexism in Practice: Feminist Ethics Evaluating the Hookup Culture,” Conor Kelly argues that the hook up culture prevalent in today’s society is sexist towards females. He argues that this culture gives off the illusion of freedom, but it instead disempowers women. Kelly begins by giving the definition of hook up culture. He defines it as, “the practice of pursuing sexual activity without any expectation of a relationship.” He then states what he believes are the four main factors that contribute to the disempowerment brought on by this culture: a lack of commitment, use of ambiguous language, alcohol use, and a social pressure to conform. Kelly then gives his argument as to why hookup culture should be concerning.

Ira L. Reiss, a well-known sociologist, has contributed greatly to the field of human sexuality and in the 1960’s brilliantly predicted the revolutionary changes in sexual attitudes. In his novel, An End to Shame: Shaping Our Next Sexual Revolution, Reiss develops the notion that our previous sexual revolution did not adequately eliminate the inequalities related to sexuality. In reality he argues that America is in need of a newly formed sexual revolution, one that will address the negative consequences that our sex negative culture is experiencing. A significant portion of our population argues that these consequences are due to the fact that we talk too much and too soon about sex. This is an inaccurate view of the reasoning behind the sexual problems we are experiencing in America, as in reality the negative sexual outcomes we observe are due to the opposite of this view. This misconception is a common explanation for our sexual problems and many believe it is the key to solving our sexual crisis, but in reality is part of the problem. Reiss argues that “America is long overdue for a rendezvous with sexual reality” (18) and that the future of our nation depends on accepting these realities.

Based on a research finding, some individuals indicate that when they are sober and others drink around them, it was considered boring (Seaman& Ikegwuonu , 2010, p.21). It is clear that beverages have become an activity as well as apart of socialisation. Its been described as a social facilitator during interaction and when establishing a connection with others. Data explores that peer group activity has lead to a strong connection of peer experience aligned with intoxication Seaman& Ikegwuonu (2010,p.22). This elaborates the effect of drunkenness. (Borsari & Carey 2001, p.392) stated alcohol played a vital role whether its in college , social functions or peer interactions. Alcohol being referred to as an act of rebellion has today been acknowledged as something ‘normal’ in society. (Pettigrew & Donovan, 2003). Alcohol has now been considered as a social fabric that changes ones game. Gender is a general issue where men are known to drink more than females. Why does this occur?. To begin with, the term hegemonic masculinity outlines the dominant form of a heterosexual in the western world (Germov & Poole,2011, p.241). Men are seemed to be

Every generation experiences an event or societal change that influences adolescence. Technology, specifically cellular devices, have revolutionized the culture of dating and relationships. Sexting, by definition is sending someone sexually explicit photographs or messages via cell phone, has become the new normal for adolescents. More importantly, teen girls experience the pressure and repercussions of sexting. Whether a girl choses to do so or not, she is ridiculed for either being a “slut” or a “prude” amongst her peers. Our society projects women as sexual objects through images, films, and videos in media which teaches young female consumers to objectify themselves in order to capture the male gaze. Because our society is sexualized, it is no surprise that sexting has become part of dating and the gender script. The issues with sexting, particularly with adolescents females, is that it teaches them to sexually objectify themselves in order to win the boy and keep him interested. Unfortunately, if those explicit images circulate amongst other people, the girl gets bullied and slut-shamed.

Another important factor in the hookup culture is alcohol and sometimes drugs. The place you are most likely to find these factors is at a party on any college campus. Party oriented students believe that drinking enhances their experiences and improves their personalities (Wade, 2017, p.29). Not all students participate in drinking or drugs and they have felt out of place and judged (Wade, 2017, p.31).

Hooking up has become an increasingly studied culture by many sociologists around the country. These studies have been done to understand the shift from the old culture of dating to the new culture of hooking up that we experience now. Many people find it interesting that the kids of our generation have become so sexualized and carefree compared to the college days of our parents. Many people wonder how we got to this point and how the dynamics of hookups work, and why we continue to go on with them even sometimes at cost of our mental and physical help. One of these people was Kathleen A. Bogle, who wrote an entire book on the subject called, Hooking Up: Sex, Dating, and Relationships on Campus, which is the focal point of this essay.

During the 1960’s we saw the first major sexual revolution in America, along with this shift in American beliefs we also saw the feminist movement begin to take course, shaping its on points and ideas about gender equality. This era brought the normalization of contraception, public nudity, premarital sex, homosexuality and the legalization of abortion. Half a century later, a new feminist movement has begun and now sex has become more socially acceptable outside the strict boundaries of heterosexual marriage than ever. This becomes evident when you look at the rise of hookup culture in American colleges. With how accessible finding hookup partners has become (with the help of smartphone applications such as Tinder or Grindr)

Hook up culture is a fairly modern concept that has only recently emerged with the Cultural Revolution that had its origins beginning in the early 1920’s. With technological innovations advancing every day, young men and women alike have begun to come out of the comfort of their own homes to experience the freedom and opportunities of sexual activity without emotional attachment. This has been significant with the introduction of cars, movie theatres and large aspects of social media and as a result has led to different views on what is the right and wrong way to act. This essay seeks to understand if today’s hook-up culture challenges the gender binary and heteronormativity, and if the notion of this practice is accepted in different generations. Through this, two interviews will be conducted to understand the outlook of how these different practices of hook-up culture have changed

Gender Expression I think gender expression should be up to the individual as a person. I mean it is so common to have a “tomboy,” but people go crazy if a man starts to portray “feminine” qualities. I can understand it being a little awkward because it is not what we are used to seeing; however, the awkwardness is our problem to deal with. We should make somebody else uncomfortable just because we are uncomfortable with what they are doing.

The practice of casual sex is more popular among American teenagers; however, the feelings of independence and empowerment obtained by it are not the only consequences. Having multiple random partners can result in sexually transmitted diseases (STD), HIV, unwanted pregnancies and other physical risks. Moreover, depression and intimacy problems can bear

Due to the effects of sexuality in the media, more teens are open to sexual acts and at a younger age now. Adolescents are now open to "hook-ups" or friends-with-benefits, where they have "casual sexual encounters at parties and clubs between youngsters who are not emotionally involved with one another" which are influenced by new techology and take away the "first date" which would help put safe sex into the teens minds (Friedman). Some folks are worried that the sex in the media will counteract sex education and do not include problems that having sexual intercourse can bring about. In his article "Sex, Violence and the Media", Charles S. Clark explains:

Orenstein began her quest for an honest account of today’s hook-up culture as her daughter approached adolescence. Prior to this point in her life, she had only heard from friends about how teenage girls were treated in today’s culture, now she needed to know if this type of culture really did exist. Since she had been chronicling girl’s lives for over twenty-five years, it was an obvious place to start (Orenstein, P., 2016). She interviewed girls, psychologists, sociologists, pediatricians, educators, and journalist to uncover the ugly truth.