- Gen Zers are far less likely to have one-night-stands than millennials 20 years ago, and they’re much more open to the idea of marriage. Their romantic idealism took root during the pandemic.
Young people are famous for their messy “situationships,” “sneaky links,” and open-minded attitudes about dating. But they may be taking relationships more seriously than older generations.
About 62% of Gen Z said they, and their friends, do not commonly have one-night stands, according to research from the Times, which polled more than 1,000 young people in partnership with YouGov. Only about 23% say they have casually hooked up, which is markedly different from responses the Times got from young millennials in 2004. Back then, about 19% of young people said they don’t have one-night stands, and 78% said they did partake in sex on a first date.
Defying stereotypes of young people, Gen Zers tend to be a bit more conservative in the bedroom. And in the same vein, they’re taking relationships more seriously. The Times found that 21% of the young generation agrees with the notion that marriage is irrelevant. Compared to 20 years ago, when 39% of millennials said the same thing, there seems to be a growing acceptance toward tying the knot.
There are several factors driving young people today to take relationships more seriously than the generation before them. Most notably, the COVID-19 pandemic forced many Gen Z to be stuck at home, missing out on these critical life experiences and stunting social growth. And in a post–Roe v. Wade world, more are reconsidering their intimate lives and even the concept of sex altogether. When it comes to marriage, Gen Z are thinking about finding soulmates at an earlier age, and are more comfortable with the idea of divorce.
“We are about self-love and learning about ourselves in whatever way possible,” Charlie Sawyer, a 25-year-old editor at Gen Z media publication Screenshot, told the Times. “We are labeled by society as quite selfish and that’s probably the same with relationships, we don’t always need to be doing things that society deems to be the normal path.”
Gen Z is ditching casual sex and turning to life partnership
Gen Z isn’t only having fewer one-night stands than their millennial counterparts—they’re having less sex altogether.
About 30% of teens in 2021 said that they had ever had sex, a significant drop from 38% in 2019, according to a survey from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The biggest factor in this plunge was the pandemic—Gen Z experienced lockdown during a critical time of sexual exploration, which stunted social growth needed to make those intimate connections down the line. But this rate was declining far before mandates and masking; three decades ago, more than half of teenagers reported having sex.
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Gen Z’s perspective of marriage has changed, too—and it’s largely thanks to watching the generations before them. These young adults, much like millennials, were raised in environments with high divorce rates. Many likely experienced their parents splitting, which altered their views and willingness to marry. Over the past five decades marriage rates have plunged by about 60%, according to a 2023 study from the Center for Family and Marriage Research.
Millennials were cynical about their odds for success in a long-term marriage. But Gen Z has adopted a more idealistic attitude, with many saying they want to find their soulmates—more than 40% are in serious relationships, and 27% are looking for “the one,” according to 2024 findings from Her Campus Media. And overwhelmingly, 93% said they were interested in the idea of marriage.
There are a few possible explanations: One is that Gen Zers might be more enamored with the idea of love, due to their naivety and social isolation during the pandemic. “It’s possible that their current marriage beliefs are reflective of their young age,” Lauren Napolitano, a psychologist, told Newsweek.
Another is that traditional ideas of and roles in marriages have changed. Rigid constructs of femininity and masculinity have been turned on their head, and more young people are expecting equal partnership in terms of household duties and breadwinning. By marrying for genuine love and not economic prospect, there’s hope that historical marital troubles will be squashed.
“Older generations may have felt drawn to marriage out of necessity or obligated based on societal pressures which also led to high divorce rates, but Gen Z sees things differently,” Stephanie Kaplan Lewis, cofounder and CEO of Her Campus Media, told Newsweek. “For them, there is renewed hope in committing to a partner and having a built-in support system.”
