A survey recently conducted by the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), found that nearly half of Generation Z feels that sex scenes are not necessary in most television shows and movies.
According to the UCLA study, a majority of respondents between the ages of 13 and 24 feel that romance is overused in the plot of most shows and movies, and they would prefer more portrayals of platonic relationships and friendships.
The UCLA study also reported that a significant number (44.3%) of adolescents aged 13–24 believed that romance is excessively utilized in media, and 47.5% stated that sex scenes do not serve an essential role in the plot of most TV shows and movies. More than half (51.5%) of the respondents expressed a desire to see more content focused on friendships and platonic relationships, with 39% specifically seeking greater representation of aromantic and/or asexual characters on screen.
Dr. Yalda T. Uhls, co-author of the study and an adjunct professor in UCLA’s psychology department, highlighted the deeper underlying desire revealed by these statistics. “While it’s true that adolescents want less sex on TV and in movies, what the survey is really saying is that they want more and different kinds of relationships reflected in the media they watch.”
Dr. Uhls underlined that young people are experiencing an “epidemic of loneliness,“ a significant contributing factor to their desire for a broader spectrum of relationships in media. She also cited the shifting trend that the current youngest generation is engaging in less sexual activity than previous generations.
One noteworthy result from the survey was a shift in the preference for the type of stories respondents want to see. In the previous year, respondents expressed a preference for stories about “lives unlike my own.” However, in 2023, most respondents indicated a desire to see stories portrayed that are more similar to their own lives.
Stephanie Rivas-Lara, the study’s first author, said she was not surprised by these results. Rivas-Lara theorized that adolescents appear to be using media as a means of finding belonging and familiarity in a world marked by growing instability and uncertainty.
“As a member of Gen Z myself, I wasn’t surprised by some of what we’re seeing this year,” Rivas-Lara explained. “There has been a wide-ranging discourse among young people about the meaning of community in the aftermath of COVID-19 and the isolation that came with it.”
