Sex Drugs and Texting 287
statesman writes "The Associated Press reports that teens who text frequently are three and a half times more likely to have sex. A survey of 4,200 public high school students in the Cleveland area found that one in five students sent more than 120 text messages a day or spent more than 3 hours a day on Facebook. Students in this group were much more likely to have sex. Alcohol and drug use also correlate with frequent texting and heavy Facebook use."
Makes sense (Score:2)
You gotta contact your dealer/homeless guy buying your beer/friends parent somehow, right?
Shocking... (Score:5, Insightful)
Who knew?
Re:Shocking... (Score:4, Interesting)
Seriously. "Promiscuity linked to sociability among teenagers, news at 11!"
The only thing different about this and the circumstances that were true when I went through high school is the tech angle. Predictably, this will appeal to the Luddite crowd, which means depressingly it probably will make the news.
Re: (Score:2)
The article is from the AP. It did make the news.
Also, at least one local TV news station here in Maine aired this report last night. I posted a comment much like yours in reply to a friend who pointed this out on Facebook. I'm certain there will be no shortage of folks who don't bother to make that one-step-removed connection.
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
After watching a few episodes of Skins, it's obvious kids of today are out of control. Taking away their mobile phones should fix that right up.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Shocking... (Score:5, Insightful)
Actually, NOT having a cell phone made it much easier to get away with trouble. Growing up, there were not cameras EVERYWHERE, so you wouldn't get caught sucking on the skull bong, nor did you risk getting nekkid pics set up where everyone could see them.
And if you were late coming in at night...you had the excuse that you couldn't get near a phone when the car "broke down".
Yep...in many ways, low tech made for a better life for a teen as far as getting away with trouble goes.
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
When I was a kid, trouble was everywhere, and the cops were busy.
Get offa my bunk.
Re:Shocking... (Score:5, Funny)
After looking at the federal debt, it's obvious the elderly of today have been out of control. Taking away their Social Security and Medicare should fix that right up.
not popular, just needy (Score:4, Insightful)
If you are texting all day long, you're aching for attention. That doesn't mean you are popular. Probably the opposite is true, at least in your own mind. You're begging for attention, for confirmation that others give a damn about you.
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
I don't know what you're talking about...sex and drugs/alcohol have always been the activities of the popular crowd.
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
You sound like you are around my age with your cultural references & I assure you, the rest of us were having fun too, we just tended to keep our mouths shut about it.
Gateway drugs (Score:4, Funny)
Cell phones and social networks are gateway drugs!
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Seriously. Back in my day we just did drugs, no cell phones or social networks needed.
So let me get this straight. (Score:4, Insightful)
Kids who have a social life are more likely to do social activities than their non-social peers?
Shocking!
Not quite.. (Score:5, Insightful)
Teenagers who have a social life that is driven by peer validation, rather than, say, quality of social interaction or deep interest in a certain activity, are more likely to have sex and/or engage in risk taking behaviors in an attempt to impress those peers. I remember when I was growing up, parents were being warned about teenagers spending more than an hour a night on the phone being the cause of all types of 'naughty' 'nefarious' activity. In previous decades it was probably the kids who went to outdoor concerts, or the kids always heading up to a lovers lane or old quarry to drink. In the Victorian era these people were called dandies. The technology is essentially irrelevant, so long as that segment of the population exists, they'll do whatever is 'in thing.'
A 'social life' is not a one size fits all label. There are very, very few non-social people in the world, which is the main reason solitary confinement drives people nuts--it's that the value each person places on different types of social interaction varies enormously.
Re:Not quite.. (Score:5, Insightful)
What exactly is wrong with teenagers having sex? I'm entirely unclear as to why this is considered a universally bad thing. Just make sure they know about STDs and how to use condoms, and let them go to town. It won't hurt.
Letting teenagers drive, on the other hand - that is a bad fucking idea. Way, way more teenagers die or get injured because they suck at driving than because they're having sex.
It's so weird how badly weighted our society's sense of danger is.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Jesus Christ... (Score:5, Insightful)
The other possibility is that teenagers have sex, drink, and use drugs because they enjoy those activities, just the same way that adults do. Yes, there are risks involved, and yes those activities are dangerous when pursued irresponsibly. That doesn't always mean that they are giving in to peer pressure.
Teens who chose not to have sex are typically making that choice because of the huge pressure society puts on them. Waiting until you are 18 to have sex is *not* biologically natural.
Boy (Score:5, Funny)
Causality (Score:2)
Actually, I think sex, alchohol, and narcotics are the gateway drugs to texting.
Of Course (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
it would make sense that women just want sex!
Stephen Fry? [dailymail.co.uk]
In other news (Score:2)
Teens who have a lot of friends to text with also have a lot of friends to party with.
So that is the secret? (Score:2)
If I would have known this 30 years ago when I was in high school, I would have been unstoppable...oh wait.
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Well, that accounts for your choice of user name.... ;)
Re: (Score:2, Funny)
So... (Score:2)
Wow. (Score:3, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
...giggle...
Well, duh. (Score:2)
Does it really surprise anyone that you can link sociability to promiscuity? Especially in teenagers? Pretty much the only difference between this and the circumstances that were true when I went through high school is the tech angle. Which will, of course, result in much hand-wringing among Luddites.
This just in (Score:2)
social kids are more like to conduct social activities. I'm shocked I say, simply shocked.
Of course the real point of the article is that kids without supervision take risky behaviors.
So that's the secret.... (Score:2)
If I knew this 30 years ago while I was in high school, I would have been unstoppable...Oh wait.
Surprise! (Score:2)
Heh (Score:2)
Yep, this confirms it... (Score:2)
News Flash (Score:2)
Popular teens more likely to get laid, take drugs. More at eleven.
Its as I suspected (Score:2)
Social kids do social things.... news at 11 (Score:4, Insightful)
Sex and texting (Score:3, Insightful)
"It's neither possible nor interesting to do anything else when completely wasted. And whose leg is that anyway".
side note: increasing irritation with the dichotomy between alcohol and (other) drugs.
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
amazing! (Score:2)
Now how about a study that shows people who are too busy to txt are alone, doing whatever the opposite of sex is?
Makes sense. (Score:2)
No shit, sherlock (Score:2)
Popular people (e.g. those with lots of friends to talk to via text messaging) have more sex? I never could have guessed.
Next up for California (Score:2)
Um, Duh? (Score:2)
To Be Young Again (Score:2)
Re:To Be Young Again (Score:4, Funny)
but people who see me texting would think I was 3.5 times more likely to be getting some.
The way I hammer terminal commands into my N900, people must think I fuck like a rabbit.
Wait... (Score:4, Funny)
Re: (Score:2)
Astounding (Score:2)
Popular students go to more parties, where they can booze, blaze, and bang? Groundbreaking. Even more astounding [arstechnica.com]
On the bright side, the survey found that almost a quarter of students engaged in zero texting (22.5 percent) or social networking (22.2 percent), and that they likewise had better health.
Unpopular kids don't get the chance to play with the cool kids.
That would explain a few things (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
I guess the reverse is true, too, given the number of slashdotters who make it clear that they never use Facebook.
Assuming the cause and effect is sex with high school kids leads to facebook use, its no great surprise that a married guy like me has no use what so ever for facebook.
Assuming the cause and effect is facebook use leads to sex with high school kids, its no great surprise that a married guy like me has no use what so ever for facebook.
Either way I'm not interested.
The weird part is before I deleted my facebook account, all my single guy friends were convinced the best way to get girls was to post constantly,
No shit, sherlock. (Score:2)
More popular people (e.g. those that have a bunch of friends to send text messages to) have more sex? I never could have guessed.
Also having a boyfriend or girlfriend is normally a sure sign you'll be sending a lot of texts to that person.
Newsflash: Being social leads to sex! (Score:2)
I hate to beat on a dead horse here, but the media that picked up on this story has apparently forgotten that correlation and causation are in fact not the same thing, yet again.
absolutely shocking (Score:2)
i thought all the kids were texting themselves and not teens of the opposite sex. or at most they were discussing books
Um, Duh? (Score:2)
So.. (Score:2)
The popular kids get more action... Wow. I'm glad they did this study.
Wrong Correlation? (Score:3, Funny)
Alcohol and drug use also correlate with frequent texting and heavy Facebook use.
Isn't it really people who text and use Facebook for long periods of time need to drink and use drugs?
What you're saying... (Score:2)
...is that the popular kids who have someone to txt with are more likely to have sex? Shocker.
I bet in the 90's kids who used the phone more often were more likely to copulate as well.
I guess that explains a few things (Score:2)
We already knew this. (Score:2)
Basically, the more social a teen is the more likely it is that they're going to date and have sex. Also, the more social your teen is, the more likely it is that they are going to go to parties with alcohol and drugs.
What's new here? Stop giving parents new "warning signs" to start worrying and freaking out about. I would be happy that my kid is social, unless it's out of hand, because it generally means they're more well adjusted.
Wish i knew... (Score:2)
I wish i had known that when i was young.... Would have invented the mobile phone (to do texting) and facebook (to use it) in order to get more sex.
This makes sense. (Score:2)
Well duh (Score:3, Insightful)
Shocking (Score:2)
Not that surprising really (Score:2)
The more effort you put into your social life, the more you will have sex. I really can't be bothered with being sociable right now. Wouldn't object to the sex, but what can you do (legally)?
Stop the presses! (Score:2)
Man, things really have changed a lot in the past 20 years. Back then the #1 way to get chicks was to be a total recluse and shun all contact.
Texting turns kids into Text-itutes? (Score:2)
Should I be the first? (Score:2)
To say correlation does not equate causation?
Could it possibly be that students who use drugs and have sex are more inclined to use Facebook/Texting and not the other way around? I mean how else do they contact their drug distributors and pimps?
Both are caused by an active social life (Score:2, Insightful)
I'll be the first to say it: Correlation does not imply causation.
It should not be surprising that heavy facebook use and texting indicates a more active social life. Teenagers with a more active social life are more likely to be in social situations that could lead to risky social behaviours.
In all likelyhood both are being caused by having an active social life.
Re:Both are caused by an active social life (Score:4, Informative)
Only in those words. The second line of the article is:
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
"I'll be the first to say it: Correlation does not imply causation."
Cool, I came here looking for the first dummy who was going to say that. It's Slashdot's most popular content-free thing to mindlessly parrot.
Both the article and even the summary here correctly use the term "correlate" (As in, "Alcohol and drug use also correlate with frequent texting and heavy Facebook use."), so what could you possibly think that you're adding or correcting? As Daniel Dvorkin says, "The correlation between ignorance of s
Re: (Score:2)
Yeah, if I had to spend any more time on Facebook or texting I think I'd shoot myself.
..Wait (Score:2)
Honestly, I interpret it as: overly social teens are more likely to have sex.
This is sensationalist reporting at it's finest. Totally bullshit.
CecilPL (Score:2)
In other news, people who engage in certain social behaviours are more likely to engage in other social behaviours.
Social kids are more likely to party? No way! (Score:2)
Popular kids more likely to have sex, party.
Solution (Score:2)
Having RTFA.... (Score:2)
Hopefully I can save someone a bit of trouble:
Yes, we all know that correlation isn't causation. The authors of the study didn't imply any such thing, and their tentative conclusions run along the lines that a common cause (parenting) could influence both texting and risky behaviors in a parallel manner.
All the cool kids are doing it... (Score:2)
That makes sense (Score:2)
Alcohol and drug use also correlate with frequent texting and heavy Facebook use
I knew no one in their right mind would use facebook.
We already knew this. (Score:2)
Basically, the more social the teen is the more likely they are to date and have sex. Also, the more social the teen is the more likely they are going to go to parties that have alcohol and drugs.
We need to stop giving parents new "warning signs" to worry about. Unless their texting is way out of hand, there is nothing to worry about. In fact, the more social our children are, the more likely that they're well adjusted and, in reality, I'd rather have a well adjusted child that has sex (providing that it
!= causality (Score:2)
Looks like a case of fake causality there... more social kids are more likely to text a lot. more social kids are more likely to get it on a lot.
Newsflash (Score:2)
This just in. Kids with a social life have more sex. Film at 11.
Stop the presses! (Score:2)
Man, it's not like it used to be. See, back 20 years ago, the way to get the chicks was to shun all contact and be completely awkward at all times.
Humans that interact more have more sex (Score:2)
Humans that interact more have more sex. Since sex is interaction and relies on successful social queues that can only be learned through interaction, I'm not sure I'm all that impressed by the findings.
Likewise, if you wanted to cut your kid off from sex, alienating them from their culture would likely do it. Why do you think they invented Dungeons and Dragons??
No surprise here... (Score:2)
I would expect that the more popular you and the more friends you have, the more time you'll spend on Facebook and/or texting. Likewise, the larger your social group, the more likely you are to have sex and go to parties with drugs/alcohol.
I'm sure, though, that this will prompt a huge backlash trying to protect our children from the corrupting evils of technology.
And the corrollary (Score:2)
Amish people more likely to be virgins.
You expected something different? (Score:2)
Teens who spend 3 hours plus on Facebook a day and send 120 plus texts a day have more sex than those who don't? You're kidding?
Who would have ever thought that teens who spend more time maintaining their social relationships than their peers ended up having sex more often than those who didn't?
Next you'll be shocking us with the revelation that frequent texting is inversely correlated with library card use and Quiz Bowl participation.
The key, as usual, is the parents (Score:5, Insightful)
That's the key there. The same kids who are allowed to text that much and spend that much time on Facebook (3 hours a day? seriously?) probably aren't getting a whole lot of direction from their parents in any other aspect of their lives either. I'm guessing you could correlate high school dropout rates, teen pregnancies, and basically every other negative statistic involving teenagers with this same behavior. The unifying factor in all of it is permissive or absent parents. It seems that once their kids hit puberty, a lot of parents just sort of figure the kids have got their shit together and it's time to move from parent mode to friend mode. Yes, as kids age they need to be let off the leash a little more to live their own lives, but a lot of parents take that way too far and just sort of release the kids into the wild and let them sink or swim entirely on their own once they hit high school (or even middle school!). The result is the kids get the guidance they're missing from their parents from their friends instead, and that's never a good thing.
Hmmm... Sex, Texting & Drugs... (Score:2)
Wait a sec! (Score:3, Funny)
Teen 2: Yep, that's what the article says.
Teen 1: AWESOME! *begins texting furiously*
Teen 2: Who are you texting??
Teen 1: Well, you, of course?
Teen 2: I'm flattered. Maybe you ought to go text yourself.
So... (Score:2)
Remember kids... (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Or maybe the kids that are more social are also more likely to:
1) Get invited to parties where drugs & alcohol are likely to be found;
2) Meet someone who wants to see them naked;
Sometimes it really is that simple.
Re: (Score:2)
And don't forget the awkward texts.
"So how's it going? I know I never text, but I figured I'd say hello. And um... we should totally have sex."
Re:Anonymous Coward (Score:5, Funny)
Yeah, because sex is just the worst possible thing you could ever do with your time.
I know every time I finish, I remark to my lady, "Well there's 3 minutes we'll never get back. Think of the bugs we could have fixed in open source software instead of this shameful, disgusting, awful, nasty thing we just did."
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
And the worst thing is, that 3 minutes includes 2 minutes of begging and pleading with his lady to put out...
Re:Anonymous Coward (Score:4, Insightful)
I like to minimize the time spent doing awful things like sex, so I can spend more quality time on things like open source projects on github and submitting kernel patches.
You're free to do what you want with your time, just don't ask me to join you in your walled garden of sex and wasted time.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Depends on your definition of "drugs".
Alcohol and marijuana are fine, given some degree of moderation.
But start talking about stuff like methamphetamines, and I think there's a problem.