Pluralistic Ignorance and Hooking-up Culture

 BLOG #2- Pluralistic Ignorance- September 21st, 2024


I am a university student at St. Francis Xavier University (STFX), and throughout my last three years here one thing has become predominantly evident to me; that is the “hook-up” culture, which is quite strange and very different in university culture compared to other phases of people's lives. My peers and I have often discussed how unsettling this “hook-up” culture is, as it seems that many university students have become desensitized to the intimacy that should accompany sexual relationships. It is a challenging conversation to have without seeming either overly prude or overly promiscuous. However, after reading Reiber and Garcia’s (2010) article on “hooking up” culture and pluralistic ignorance, I have come to realize that this culture has a much stronger psychological component than I previously assumed. Pluralistic ignorance (PI) is the idea that individuals may behave in certain ways under the false assumption that their own thoughts or feelings are different from others in their social groups. This idea is very applicable to “hooking up” culture in universities and to my own experience at StFX. Reiber and Garcia’s article provided readers with shocking statistics, a study performed with 507 university students uncovered that 64% of participants engaging in sexual encounters misinterpreted the comfort level of their sexual partner. This disconnect may lead to confusion around the meaning of proper consent and can result in negative psychological consequences for individuals. This conversation was certainly not common a hundred years ago, so what has changed? I believe the media has played a crucial role in this cultural shift regarding sexual relationships. Perhaps your favorite TV shows, movies, and even the music you listen to have influenced your perceptions, normalizing the idea that hooking up is an essential part of university life that every student should experience. I encourage readers of this blog to reflect on their university careers and consider this question: In what ways do societal expectations and media portrayals of hook-up culture shape our personal beliefs and behaviors regarding casual relationships?

Reference
Reiber, C., & Garcia, J. R. (2010). Hooking up: Gender differences, evolution, and pluralistic ignorance. Evolutionary Psychology, 8(3), 390-404. 10.1177/147470491000800307

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