Back in time, around the 50s or 60s sex is a topic that is always discussed in hush tones and in closed doors. Nowadays, however, sex is something that can be discussed over lunch or coffee. In fact, sex has become so casual that it can even be seen in news and incorporated into jokes. In fact, nowadays it is considered normal for adolescents to engage in sexual activities.
Although adolescent sexuality is usually examined in the context of romantic relationships, studies have shown that adolescents have sexual experiences that have occurred outside of the context of romantic relationships--also known as casual or nonrelational experiences. Popular press articles, especially, have raised concern that a decline in committed dating relationships among young people may have emotional consequences. Participating in nonrelational sexual activity appears to be quite common among adolescents and young adults, with over three fourths of college students reporting having had at least one such encounter. Nonrelational sexual behavior has been labeled with terms such as "hooking up" or "friends with benefits. A hookup is defined as "a sexual encounter which may or may not include sexual intercourse, usually occurring on only one occasion between two people who are strangers or brief acquaintances". A hookup becomes such when the participating parties are not involved in a committed relationship, and the encounter is short-term and occurs outside of a committed relationship.
Another situation that adolescents or young adults of today may find themselves in is the FB scenario or the friends with benefits relationship. Friends with benefits is defined as a relationship between two friends of the opposite sex who engage in sexual activity but mutually decide not to define their relationship as romantic. The definitional script for friends with benefits varies from that of a hookup only in the length of time (possibility of long-term involvement) and the addition of an ongoing friendship relationship between the two partners.
According to a study by Baxter in 2004, nonrelational sex is beneficial for young men because sex-driven and commitment-phobic are consistent with traditional depictions of masculinity that call for a man to be assertive and successful with as many sexual partners as possible and to remain unattached and unemotional toward these partners afterward; whereas women on the other hand, are assumed to seek emotional closeness and committed relationships. However, a recent push for examining men's nonconformity to traditional gender roles has revealed within-gender variability in men's enactments of masculinity, including their experiences with sexuality. In fact, a number of recent accounts suggest that men and boys may not universally benefit from nonrelational sex, but may instead seek and enjoy close emotional ties with their sexual partners as much as women do. There is diversity in findings regarding men's experience with and attitudes toward nonrelational sex. Whereas studies comparing men's and women's experience tend to support the idea that men seek nonrelational sex over traditional dating, studies also find that this preference is not universal. For example, although men are more likely than women to anticipate casual sex, a study conducted by Townsend in 1995 found that 8% of men reported they found it difficult to keep from getting emotionally involved with a nonrelational sex partner. And although it was reported that more men than women enjoy casual sex, a study showed that only one fourth of men respondents have stated that they "always enjoy hooking up," suggesting that the majority have more complicated feelings. Other men have even referred to sexual relations with their long-term partners as hookups but with relational goals in mind.
Based from these studies, it can be concluded that nonrelational sex is not necessarily pro-guy. In fact, sometimes for men what started out as something non-committal may end up to be the last relationship that they will ever have.
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