According to a new study by YouGov U.K, being sexually fluid is common — more common than you may have thought. If you’ve yet to introduce yourself to the term “sexually fluid,” then it’s time you do so. Although the concept of being sexually fluid has been around for a long time, it’s only been in the past year or so that it’s become a term that more people aren’t just aware of, but are using to describe themselves. Orange is the New Black’s Ruby Rose identifies herself as “gender fluid,” and Annie Clark, who’s professionally known as St. Vincent, has said, “I believe in gender fluidity and sexual fluidity. I don’t really identify as anything… I think you can fall in love with anybody.”
But what does it mean to be sexually fluid? In the simplest of terms, you don’t define yourself as straight or gay, but rather someone who drifts somewhere in the middle of the Kinsey scale where 0 is completely straight and 6 is “exclusively homosexual.” You don’t fall in love with people because of their sex, but because of the person. Once we take labels out of the equation, it opens up a whole world of possibility when it comes to dating and love. As Miley Cyrus explains it: "Everything that's legal, I'm down with. Yo, I'm down with any adult — anyone over the age of 18 who is down to love me."
Here’s what the study by YouGov UK and U.S. based research has found about sexual fluidity and just how open we’ve all become to same-sex love.
1. Almost Half Of 18 To 24-Year-Olds Don’t Consider Themselves Straight
According to the YouGov U.K. study of 1,600 British adults, 49 percent of those in the 18 to 24 age bracket define their sexuality as not being 100 percent straight. Overall, however, 72 percent of respondents identify as completely straight.
2. 43 Percent of 18- To 24-Year-Olds Identify As Sexually Fluid
Although there are percentages of people in all age groups who identify as sexually fluid, with even seven percent of those over 60 saying they were, the biggest numbers came with younger people. Of the people surveyed, 29 percent of those between 25 and 39, and 43 percent between 18 and 24 identify as sexually fluid.
3. Those Who Identify As One On The Kinsey Scale Are More Likely To Have A Same-Sex Relationship
While those who consider themselves a zero on the Kinsey scale (exclusively heterosexual) don't have any desires to engage in same-sex relations, the next level up (the one crowd) feel quite differently. Of those who identify as one on the Kinsey Scale, they were found to be 35 percent more likely to be attracted to or have a relationship with someone of the same sex compared to those who identified at a zero level.
4. The Majority Of Americans Support Same-Sex Marriage
Not that this should be very surprising, but according to a new study by the Pew Research Center, 55 percent of all Americans support same-sex marriage. But when it comes to even more support, we can look to the Millennials who, at 70 percent, support same-sex marriage.
5. Most Young Republicans Are All For Same Sex Marriage, Too
I’m sorry ― what? But yes, you read that correctly. According to a 2014 study by the Pew Research Center, 61 percent of Republicans between the ages of 18 and 29 support same-sex marriage, compared to a 1973 study that found that Republicans felt that same-sex relations were "always wrong." Maybe there’s hope for the world after all? Although, let's not hold our breath ― we still have Donald Trump with whom to contend.
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