Deidre Green

Are Our Young Men Being Forgotten?

Recent data from the CDC suggests that adolescents are facing major mental health issues, including surges in depression and suicidal ideation. This is especially true for girls. There is, however, cause to worry about young men. According to a story from The Hill, most young men are single, while most young women are not. As of 2022, the Pew Research Center found that 30% of U.S. adults are neither married nor living with a partner, nor engaged in a committed relationship. Nearly half of all young adults are single. Let’s take a closer look at these numbers: 34% of women and a whopping 63% of men. What explains this disparity? The Pew study reveals that since 2019, the share of single men who say they’re looking for dates or relationships has declined from 61% to 50%. In 2018, 28% of men aged 18 to 30 reported they had no sexual activity in the past year, compared with 18% of women in the same age group. The Hill report states that men in their twenties are more likely than women in their twenties to be romantically uninvolved, sexually dormant, friendless, and lonely. They stand at the vanguard of an epidemic of declining marriage, sexuality, and relationships that afflict all young Americans. Among the causes and factors contributing to this trend are a reliance on social media and online pornography. Additionally, more young women are choosing to date and marry slightly older men, while heterosexual women are becoming more selective.