Ours is a culture seemingly obsessed with sex. Graphic depictions are found on TV and the internet. Dating apps and hook up culture the new norm. But data from numerous surveys suggests otherwise. Sexual activity has declined in all age groups, single and married, across the globe. Most marked amongst the young, with a 35% increase in the number having no sex in the last year compared to twenty years ago.
Should we welcome this decline as a sign that there is less unwanted sex and see it as a victory for contemporary culture? Or, is it an indication that something is profoundly amiss and a worrying sign that dating apps, consent concerns and porn are killing romance? Or has the prevalence of media sex masked and deepened an underlying shame that we urgently need to address?