Understanding Hookup Culture

Synopsis

According to a wave of recent new reports and high-profile books, "hookup" culture is in the process of replacing traditional dating on college campuses -- radically altering how young people think about intimacy and sex, and liberating young women from patriarchal rituals and norms. But for anyone looking to get a handle on these allegedly transformative changes, there's been little beyond speculation and anecdotal evidence. This presentation by Stanford University's Paula England, a leading researcher in the sociology of gender, clarifies the issue. Mobilizing extensive research, England begins to chart whether hookup culture represents a real challenge to the old gender order, or whether we're simply seeing traditional gender norms dressed up in new social forms. Especially suitable for courses in gender, sociology, psychology, and sexuality.

Release Date:2011

Duration:30 min

ISBN:1-932869-49-2

Subtitles:English

Trailers

Watch the trailer

Filmmaker Credits

Produced & Directed by

Sut Jhally

Editor

Jason Young

Screenings

American Sociological Association meeting
Las Vegas
August 20-23, 2011

Resources: Downloads and Related Links

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Praise

"In Understanding Hookup Culture, sociology professor Paula England presents an engaging lecture about her research on heterosexual relationships on college campuses. Drawing on both qualitative and quantitative data, she offers definitions of 'hookups,' 'dating,' and 'relationships'; she illustrates that hookups sometimes do and sometimes do not lead to relationships; and she argues that, despite the fact that the current hookup culture may be relatively new, it continues to be gendered in traditional ways. Given that the data England presents are rich, challenging, intriguing, and put into question many assumptions both students and instructors may hold about gender and campus culture, the discussions in our classrooms should be productive and rewarding."

Films for the Feminist Classroom
Sarah Projansky, University of Utah

"Understanding Hookup Culture sheds some much-needed factual light on a troubling trend in the eyes of many American adults. It does not engage in moralizing, nor should it. The film should motivate some interesting discussion and questions, and it may also contribute to the wider American dialog about not just what college students and young singles are doing but what we want them to do and what social, emotional, and physical consequences their choices make. Suitable for college courses in cultural anthropology, anthropology of sexuality/gender, and American studies, as well as general audiences."

Jack David Eller
Anthropology Review Database

"The statistics and data that England produces are convincing and sobering. I would recommend the video for use in the classroom and community."

Maureen C. McHugh
Sex Roles: A Journal of Research