College students are waking up next to strangers.

Hooking up, which is synonymous with having a one-night stand, is as popular
as it has ever been among college students, according to a Journal of Sex Research study.

The study, titled "Pluralistic Ignorance and Hooking Up," defined "hooking up" as, “two people who are casual acquaintances or who have just met that evening at a bar or party [and] agree to engage in some forms of sexual behavior for which there will likely be no future commitment.”

If that scenario sounds familiar it is because college students are more likely to consider casual sex as a normal part of life, according to the study.

A major factor in hooking up is the idea that everybody is doing it, which is described in the study as pluralistic ignorance. Since college students think their peers are hooking up, they are more likely to accept it as normal behavior.

“As [they] get older, the more important the peer group becomes,” said professor of public health Bev Ovrebo.

Peer groups, especially ones in the Bay Area that are open to alternative views on the norms of sex, are the most important contributors to values on sex, said Ovrebo.

At SF State, an informal poll of 100 students gave a glimpse of what the norms really were. Of 100 students, the results split almost evenly between students who have had one-night stands, 46 percent, and those that have not, 54 percent. Sixty-one percent of those surveyed would have a one-night stand under the right circumstances, according to the survey.

The SF State survey reflected the views expressed in the Journal of Sex Research study when it came to how students view other students’ sexual behavior. Eighty-four percent thought a majority of college students have hooked up at least once, and a majority, 72 percent, thought hooking up is okay, according to the SF State poll.

When asked to talk about their experiences with casual sex, two students who were interviewed were wary of admitting to having a one-night stand, but they felt that it really depended on the individual, and noted the importance of using protection.

Sarah Stewart, 21, laughed and gave a sigh of relief at the question. She was proud to say she waited until she was married.

Others gave their reasons for hooking up.

“When I was younger it was experimental,” said Dan, 20, who asked that his last name not be used. “As I got older, drinking caused it.”

There is sex and then there is making love, and the two do not always mix, said Dan.

“A one-night stand is the physical act of sex and gratification,” he said.
“[Having one] doesn’t make you less of a person.”

College students do hook up and many think every one else does too, according to the Journal of Sex Research study. One goal of sex research and subsequent sex education is to understand sexual practices and keep communication about sex open, said Ovrebo.

“We don’t judge [people’s] behaviors,” said Ovrebo. “If people are open, it reduces harm.”