"If You Haven't Seen Bed Scenes"... New Media Trend Among US Generation Z

"Preference for Friendship and Emotional Connection Content Instead of Love"
Tendency to Lose Interest in Sexual Relations

Half of Generation Z in the United States (born in the mid-1990s to early 2000s) prefer content that emphasizes mental connection and friendship over physical love.

On the 25th (local time), foreign media including the UK’s Guardian reported this based on an annual report released by the 'Scholars and Storytellers Center' (CSS) at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), which conducted a survey of 1,500 adolescents.

In this survey, 51.5% of respondents aged 13 to 24 expressed a desire to watch more content focusing on friendship or emotional connection rather than romantic relationships between men and women.

[Image source=Pixabay]

47.5% of respondents said that 'bed scenes' in TV programs or movies are not important, and 44.3% responded that the media overuses romance.

Dr. Yalda Ouls, director of CSS, stated, "These results show that young people want more types of relationships reflected in media beyond romantic love between men and women," adding, "Writers have mainly used romantic love and sex between men and women as the primary means of character development, but now they need to recognize that young people want stories reflecting various aspects of human relationships."

This aligns with previous analyses indicating that Generation Z tends to have less interest in sexual relationships compared to earlier generations.

Earlier, a 2021 study by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that only 30% of teenage respondents reported having had sexual intercourse at least once. This is a significant drop from 38% in 2019. Prior to that, the proportion of teenagers who had experienced sexual intercourse often exceeded 50%.

Another study also reported that Generation Z adults have a lower frequency of sexual activity compared to those in their 30s and 40s.

[Image source=Pixabay]

Experts interpret that the isolated lifestyle during the COVID-19 pandemic likely reinforced adolescents’ tendency to focus on friendship and emotional connections.

Stephanie Rivas-Lara, the first author of this study, explained, "There was widespread discourse among young people about the meaning of community and the resulting isolation during the COVID-19 aftermath," adding, "Adolescents view media as a 'third place' where they can connect with others and feel a sense of belonging."

Meanwhile, the report also analyzed the diverse preferences teenagers have regarding content.

90% of respondents indicated that they do not prefer content that expresses desires for wealth and fame. The stories they prefer are 'hopeful stories overcoming adversity' or 'stories about people living lives similar to theirs.'