By Sara Hanson
University students are definitely doing more than just chatting over MSN.
A new survey conducted by CampusKiss.com, an online dating service for Canadian university and college students, found that of the 2,484 students who completed the survey, 87 per cent are having virtual sex.
CampusKiss co-founder Noah Gurza explained the two primary motives behind the survey.
“Students are surveyed on every other aspect of their lives, academically, university or college related,” said Gurza. “But they have never been polled on a coast to coast basis on matters of sex. This was also a great opportunity for us to continue to brand the site to students on matters that we knew would be engaging and whose results would be informative and entertaining.”
Whether they are doing it online or not, 45 per cent of students claimed to be having sex two to five times a week. Those promiscuous students who claimed to be doing it six or more times a week made up 17 per cent of respondents.
The men kept their stereotype alive as 19 per cent claimed to have had too many sexual partners to count, versus only nine per cent of women. Of those students who either practice monogamy most of the time or don’t practice it at all, 55 per cent were men and 44 per cent were women. One statistic did go against the university stereotype, as 87 per cent claimed to be sober while having sex.
Although an encouraging 90 per cent of students said their campus supports and promotes safe sex initiatives, eight per cent of men and four per cent of women admitted to using no protection at all. For those that do choose the safe route, condoms were the number one choice of protection.
Of all the results, the number of students having virtual sex was the most astounding to those who conducted the survey.
“The question becomes: are students pleasing themselves online and foregoing the real thing?” questioned Gurza. “Undetermined at this point, but at least we know that this type of sex is fully safe. Well, next to abstinence, which by and large is extinct, doing it online is the safest sex a person can have.”
University of Calgary Health Services senior physician Dr. Lois Milne noted that a lack of funding has prevented Health Services from surveying U of C students’ attitudes towards sex.
Survey results are available here.