Skip to Content, Navigation, or Footer.
Support the IDS in College Media Madness! Donate here March 24 - April 8.
Thursday, March 28
The Indiana Daily Student

opinion

COLUMN: A test of morality

When our lives are in peril, we fall back on the only mechanism keeping us separate from the rest of the animal kingdom: a moral compass.

The Public Religion Research Institute published the 2015 Survey of Millennials, Sexuality and Reproductive Health on Friday. The PRRI conducted the survey using a random sample of 2,314 adults between the ages 18 and 35.

Questions asked to millennials revolved around sex, sex education, contraception, abortion and the current state of the country.

Some of the statistics, such as 47 percent of millennials surveyed agree transgender folks face greater social stigma, suggest what we already know: millennials are a progressive generation.

But other findings indicate different conclusions — 38 percent surveyed believe sex between same-gender adults is morally wrong and 37 percent surveyed think casual sex is morally wrong.

The most shocking statistic was 41 percent of those surveyed believed sex between teens was morally wrong regardless of the situation. This is rather odd, considering a study by the national Youth Risk Behavior Survey found 47.4 percent of teens in grades nine through 12 in 2011 had sex.

Is it considered immoral if you don’t practice it yourself? Sure, humans make mistakes, and no one’s saying that sticking to your values is a cakewalk. But millennials saying one thing and doing another supports the negative stereotype our elders instill upon us.

Media outlets have jumped on this survey’s bandwagon, raising headlines like “The Sexually Conservative Millennial” in the Atlantic and other suggestive titles. These articles convey the idea that a generation notorious for being open-minded is in fact supportive of backwards “values.”

But what the reader misses in these articles are the actual numbers. For example, 41 percent is a statistic violently plucked from the survey for mass audiences’ improper consumption. What the articles don’t print is that 24 percent believe it is morally acceptable, 29 percent said it depends on the circumstance and 6 percent marked other or refused to answer.

In conclusion, a majority of millennials surveyed don’t actually think sex between teens is morally unsound.

Another problem with this survey is the word choice.

Take smoking, for instance. As of now, smoking is at an all-time low in this country due to educating younger generations on the negative health effects. Most millennials will be able to list a few reasons why smoking is unhealthy, but what about immoral?

Is it sinful to fill your lungs with toxins? I beg to differ — it’s a nasty habit, but it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor that sends you to hell, if hell does exist.

Using options like “morally wrong,” “depends on the situation,” “morally acceptable” and “other/refused” doesn’t give a lot of breathing room for those surveyed.

My personal belief is sex in high school isn’t the smartest move. Family members who have been teen parents and high percentages of STIs have persuaded me into believing sex during the high school years isn’t a responsible decision. But there’s nothing immoral about teen sex — in fact, I would never consider it a question of morality.

Believe it or not, we don’t usually make conscious decisions about our morals in day-to-day life. Your values shape your personality in a fluid way because morals can change.

And when we’re suddenly asked to jot these values on paper, to make a conscious decision of what they are, we’re not representative of how we actually use those morals.

Serving as a reminder you shouldn’t take everything you read to heart, this survey does anything but convince me millennials view these situations as reported.

Morals function as guidelines, but in no way do they tell you all the defining features of a person. And they shouldn’t for a generation either.

Get stories like this in your inbox
Subscribe