Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard Carter Sherman (on the sex recession)
36 snips
Jul 30, 2025 
Carter Sherman, an Emmy Award-nominated reporter and author of 'The Second Coming,' explores the intriguing phenomenon of a 'sex recession' among Gen Z. She shares candid insights from her research on modern intimacy, discussing the rise of elective celibacy and the repercussions of abstinence-only education. Carter also dives into how societal events shape sexual dynamics, emphasizing the need for honest conversations about sex. With humor and clarity, she addresses the implications of this trend on future relationships and the importance of understanding today's youth.
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Hookup Culture Interview Experience
- Carter Sherman recalls a New York Times interview at her sorority about millennials' sex lives during hookup culture panic.
- She and peers felt the reporter wanted them to focus on victimization, which felt disempowering.
Rising Youth Sexual Dormancy
- Studies show a sharp rise in sexual dormancy among youth, doubling or more in less than a decade.
- This underpins the so-called sex recession observed especially in Gen Z.
Internet Fuels Vulnerability Fear
- The internet and asynchronous communication may cause young people to fear vulnerability.
- COVID lockdowns worsened this by depriving them of rites of passage and learning resilience through interpersonal experience.
