Brian Laird on WNYC and call it a crisis or a recession or just a trend, but apparently

young people are having less sex than past generations. We'll say first that the trend

is bigger than just being about sex. By most measures, Gen Z is an especially lonely and anxious

generation, dating, sex, emotional vulnerability. They've been shaped by sexual politics, social

media, and the internet generally, and by the pandemic. As their lives are increasingly

lived online, intimacy is mediated more and more through social media, like TikTok, and dating

apps. That makes it all the more difficult to forge a connection and keep one going, and reportedly,

one way this all expresses is through less sexual activity.

Joining us to talk about this is Carter Sherman, author of The Second Coming, Sex and the Next

Generation's Fight Over Its Future, published this year by Gallery Books. And Carter's a reproductive

health and justice journalist at The Guardian.

Carter, thanks for coming on.

Welcome to WNYC.

Thank you so much for having me.

Let's get everyone on the same page.

When we say sex recession, what are we talking about?

Well, I think you defined it pretty well.

It's the phenomenon wherein younger people, Gen Z, are having less sex than previous generations.

And there are numerous studies that show that this is occurring.

One in four adult members of Gen Z has not had sex with another person.

We know that only about a third of high school students have had sex, which is down from about

half back when I was in high school around 15 years ago.

...