An Ifop study reveals how much the sexuality of French singles has changed since deconfinement, in particular because of the reduction in opportunities to meet a partner and the fear of being contaminated.
- 57% of singles recognize that it is “today more difficult to meet people than before”
- 90% of them need “sexual and emotional stability” and “prefer to seek a single partner to establish a stable relationship” rather than chain partners
- 58% categorically refuse a relationship with an individual who has been infected with Covid-19
Contrary to what one might think, the lifting of health restrictions linked to Covid-19 has not boosted the sexuality of the French. According to one study* conducted by the “Gender, sexualities and sexual health” unit ofIfop for the Pornhub site, the sexual activity of single people has resumed timidly: 33% of single people had sexual intercourse the month following confinement (compared to 13% in this case during confinement), but this proportion remains below that observed before March 17 (44%).
The need for sexual and emotional stability
These figures show the difficulty for singles to meet people, in particular because of the reduction in meeting opportunities due to the closure of dance spaces (e.g. nightclubs, balls, bars with dance floors, etc.) and to take risks in the midst of a health crisis, while the fear of a second wave is growing feel: 25% say they have had sex with an ex-partner (28% of men and 22% of women) and 7% with someone they already knew but with whom they had never had of sexual intercourse before. In the end, only 5% of single people have had sex with a person they met after May 11, in transport, in a shop or at their place of work.
Both genders mostly recognize (57%) than “for a bachelor it is today‘today more difficult to meet people than‘before”, but 38% of women believe that the problem also comes from the fact that “men are more inclined than before to annoy a person they like in public places”, attitudes which have a negative effect for them.
While the abstinence imposed by confinement could have caused “sex bulimia” among single people, this survey puts a completely different trend into perspective: 90% of them need “sexual and emotional stability” and “prefer looking for a single partner to establish a stable relationship” rather than chaining partners (82% of men and 96% of women).
The fear of being infected with Covid-19
“Covid-19 constitutes a brake on the sexual freedom of single people not only as a factor restricting the opportunities for meetings but also as a source of fear and anxiety, in particular towards people working in sectors exposed to viruses or having it. already caught who now seem to be affected by a ‘new stigma'”, notes Ifop.
Thus, one out of two single women has prevented herself from going to a place where she could have met potential partners (43%) or from kissing someone she liked (45%). According to survey data, 59% of single people would refuse to have sex with a person likely to be exposed to the virus (e.g. health professionals, etc.) and 58% categorically refuse a relationship with an individual who has been infected with Covid-19.
“While the impact of COVID-19 on the sexual and affective life of single people will therefore be particularly interesting to observe in the long term, it nevertheless remains for the time being a brake on their sexual freedom as a source of constraint and fear, in particular towards people working in sectors exposed to the virus or having already caught it, who are the subject of massive rejection which is reminiscent of the stigmatization of HIV patients in the “years AIDS”, analysis Francois Kraus, d.Director of the “Gender, sexualities and sexual health” center at Ifop.
* Ifop study for Pornhub carried out by self-administered online questionnaire from June 9 to 12, 2020 with a sample of 3,018 people, representative of the population aged 18 and over residing in metropolitan France.
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