According to a study in Japan, It was revealed that more than 40 percent of men in their twenties have never had sex and some claim that “this will be the new problem in 2024 that will accelerate the decline of the birth rate in Japan.” The study was conducted in mid-2022 among a total of 8,000 men and women in their twenties, revealing that 43 percent of men in this age had never had sex.
There were many responses to these results, with some claiming that the level of virginity had, in fact, decreased compared to a decade ago, and others claiming that today’s young people are too lazy to look for a partner. Some point out that men decreased their sexual appetite for fear of being considered “stalkers.” In the past, it was said that “a man’s worth is measured by the number of women he sleeps with,” but the thinking has evolved in modern times.
However, the researcher Kazuhisa Arakawa (荒川和久) stated that “the virginity rate has not changed at all over the years.” In fact, this index has remained close to the same value for the last 30 or 40 years in Japan. In 1987, about 43.1 percent of men in their twenties had never had sex.
So men in their 50s and 60s who complain that today’s young people “are pathetic for not having had sex yet” probably see themselves reflecting on it. Furthermore, in the 80s there was talk about the “supremacy of love”, where romance between men and women was very popular.
So why do people lose their minds so much when they learn about the high number of virgin men in their twenties, even though this fact hasn’t changed in decades? According to the researcher, the reason is that there was a decrease in this index according to the same study in 2005. This indicates that the virginity index began to decline between 1987 and reached its minimum value in 2005, only to begin to rise again to almost the same value as before.
Many claim that, reviewing the events that occurred in 2005, The introduction of mobile phones and the increase in dating sites produced a distancing between men and womenso it is not a surprise that the virginity rate decreased again.
However, the perception of sex in Japan has also evolved. Virginity is no longer “a requirement” for women to consider them “suitable for marriage” and there is the concept of “sexual freedom”, that is, leading an active sexual life without the need for a romantic bond between the parties. . This was harder to do in the 1980s or 1990s, where the idea of “sex until marriage” was the norm.
However, if we look at it from a pessimistic perspective, The fact that the rate of twenty-something virgins is the same as those decades even now that sex is not frowned upon is not a good indicatorand is likely to continue to increase in the future.
A pattern could be emerging with this analysis, and it is theorized that if someone remains a virgin until the age of 25, it is very likely that they will remain one for much longer. Currently, the rates of men who do not marry and who do not have children, even when married, continue to increase. That is, men could go without having sex even while in marriage, something that is definitely a major concern for Japan.
Furthermore, some men today believe that they do not need a woman to be sexually satisfied. Homosexuality and other orientations aside, heterosexual men are preferring virtual women and even feel satisfied without real sex. The consumption of pornography and other content offers lonely men enough satisfaction that they do not worry about remaining virgins, while they continue to think that women are increasingly unattainable.
In any case, it cannot be denied that if things continue at this rate, the birth rate in Japan will continue to fall and cannot be stopped. In addition, the negative view that was held towards virgin men in the past has practically disappeared, so many men no longer feel ashamed to admit it.
Comments such as the following then reflect the critical state of society in Japan:
- «I have been on dating apps and have never been approached by women. I’m starting to think that the time and money I spend on relationships are a waste of time and pointless. I don’t want to have sex until I have a relationship with a woman, and I don’t mind losing my virginity for the time being to a prostitute. I’m just too lazy to have a relationship».
- «When I talk to women at work or privately, sometimes they get the impression from the way I talk and my attitude that ‘Oh, she’s a virgin,’ and I don’t mind being a virgin, but if they realize that, it’s very painful because I feel like they are belittling me. I don’t mind being a virgin, but it’s really hard when people find out. I want them to leave me alone, even if I’m still a virgin».
Fountain: Livedoor News
