UK poll finds 1 in 2 people aged 18-24 do not identify as being completely heterosexual

Sorry if this has already been posted. I searched ATS.

This is a YouGuv poll (1632 respondents) from August 2015 who were asked to rate themselves on the Kinsey Scale.



72% of adults chose 0 (exclusively heterosexual) with just 23% differing.

4% ranked themselves as exclusively homosexual, with 19% identifying as somewhere on the spectrum in between the two.

Among 18-24 year olds the figures are surprisingly different.

46% of young people would rank themselves as 0 (exclusively heterosexual) compared to 49% who picked another option.

The sharp increase is not due to respondents identifying themselves as exclusively homosexual. Only 6% identified as being this.



The next chart shows that generationally, the biggest difference is from the over-65s. 89% identify as either exclusively homosexual or heterosexual.

Just 7% of over 65s rank themselves somewhere between the two on a scale which may show how much the concept of fluid sexuality has grown in modern times.



"Clearly, these figures are not measures of active bisexuality - overall, 89% of the population describes themselves as heterosexual - but putting yourself at level 1 allows for the possibility of homosexual feelings and experiences. More than anything, it indicates an increasingly open minded approach to sexuality. In a further set of questions asking if respondents could conceivably be attracted to, have sex with or have a relationship with someone of the same sex (if the right person came along at the right time), level 1s were at least 35% more likely to say they could than level 0s."

Obviously a small sample size cannot be representative of the UK population but I am quite surprised to see a marked change in one/two generations within this sample size.

YouGov Link

a reply to: deliberator

So the fact im a 0 means im a closed minded bigot?

a reply to: deliberator

So 72% of adults rate themselves as exclusively heterosexual, and just 46% of young adults.

But.....but.... I thought homosexuality wasn't a choice? Maybe there's just a lot of adults in the closet still. After all, it couldn't have anything to do with the constant barrage of pro-gay propaganda in the media.

Other than that, online polls aren't very accurate as they tend to attract a certain demographic as they are voluntary.

a reply to: crazyewok

So the fact im a 0 means im a closed minded bigot?

No it just means you identify as being exclusively heterosexual.

a reply to: deliberator

The new thing is that just about everyone is a little gay. Its the new thing and I've heard it from a lot of my homosexual friends.

So many labels now its hard to figure out what going on...

cis gender
pan sexual
hetero flexible
homo flexible
Demi Sexual
Asexual
Bisexual
Tran sexual
and many more

a reply to: deliberator

Its really not crazy that college aged people would identify as less heterosexual. Lots of experimenting and is a confusing time for lots of people.

I got lots of girls to drunken make out in college

a reply to: ghostrager

Actually you raised the point that I was thinking myself. Are younger people just trying to fit in with diversity rather than actually being closeted? (the statistics do not cover this). From what I have read , having a gay friend is considered trendy. Going to gay clubs is considered trendy (most gay bars/clubs in Brighton (UK) are mixed).

You also have metrosexuals who spend more time looking in the mirror than females eg. pampering/waxing/ eyebrow plucking themselves. There is a definite change in culture compared to 40 years ago.

this was posted awhile back in another thread. It's so spot on I took a screenshot of it and gave her a tweet...

Blue_Jay33 :

a reply to: JDmOKI

cis gender pan sexual hetero flexible homo flexible Demi Sexual Asexual Bisexual Tran sexual and many more

To be honest I find all these terms to be a bit confusing ... I'm getting old.

All this proves is that young people experiment.

I'd be very interested to see the same respondents do the survey again in 10 years time. I'd put money on there being a lot more zeros.

Now and then we wonder who the real men are:

a reply to: rexsblues

Do you mean the YouGov poll has already been posted or the subject has been previously discussed?

a reply to: deliberator

Sigh. Nobody is completely one way or the other. It's a scale. Kinda like the political ideology scale if that helps make a better mental image.

I'm a female and I'm engaged to a male. That doesn't mean I've never had a (platonic)"girl crush" because I admire certain traits of theirs. Or that I've never had a dream where I was sucking face with some girl I know. Mortifying, once you wake up, of course, but that doesn't mean I'm anything but attracted to guys. I can find women attractive--it doesn't mean I want to have sex with them. Ditto for guys. I only find my fiance sexually attractive


I think it's more common for women to be wishy washy with who they're attracted to. Men strike me as being more set in stone. Women are good at being emotional, so it makes sense they would think about all of the different possibilities. With men, since they don't really have much of an emotional range, they're typically all or nothing when it comes to being attracted to someone.

Too much internet porn leads people to increasingly perverse behavior.Just like when a drug becomes boring, people look for a new fix.

Does anyone find this surprising?

originally posted by: ghostrager
a reply to: deliberator

So 72% of adults rate themselves as exclusively heterosexual, and just 46% of young adults.

But.....but.... I thought homosexuality wasn't a choice? Maybe there's just a lot of adults in the closet still. After all, it couldn't have anything to do with the constant barrage of pro-gay propaganda in the media.

Other than that, online polls aren't very accurate as they tend to attract a certain demographic as they are voluntary.

True on the polls attracting demographic, but as far as whether homosexuality (or octosexual, pansexual, etc.) is a choice or not, even if this was scientific and accurate, my question is generally: who cares?

In the US, at least, people should be able to be homosexual or whatever else, even if they actively made the choice because of accidentally watching an episode of Will & Grace, irrevocably changing their feelings on sexuality. It simply doesn't matter whether one is "born gay" or becomes gay. Frankly, I believe, like everything else, there's a full spectrum of the interaction between nature and nurture. Some may be 99.99% likely to be gay or straight at birth, others 80/20, 50/50, etc., and eventually develop their sexual identity. Again: who cares?

a reply to: dogstar23

True on the polls attracting demographic, but as far as whether homosexuality (or octosexual, pansexual, etc.) is a choice or not, even if this was scientific and accurate, my question is generally: who cares?

I care. As a libertarian; I'm all for individuals freedoms(even when I disagree), but I despise the perversion of truth.

Sexual deviations are overwhelmingly derivatives of social conditioning, not predisposed genetics.

My opposition to the matter is that it contributes in undermining the nuclear family. Which leads to a weakened social structure.

a reply to: deliberator

Probably to do with the media and schools shoving it down our throats and confusing people even more... trying to make it sound as if its totally normal and nothing wrong with it.

Next you'l be showing us a poll saying that half of males ID themselves as Women and vise-versa.... because.... its normal you know.

a reply to: CallYourBluff

It is the individuals personality rather than an external influence.

Tale for example alcohol. You have people that do not drink. People that drink on special occasions. People who drink socially at weekends. People who need a glass of wine after work. Binge drinkers. Alcoholics.

Same substance, different personalities.

What do mean regarding perverse?