Abstract
The canonical consumer demand model predicts that as the price of a substitute decreases, quantity demanded for a good decrease. In the case of demand for sexual activity and availability of alternative leisure activities, popular culture expresses this prediction as “television kills your sex life.” This paper examines the association between television ownership and coital frequency using data from nearly 4 million individuals in national household surveys in 80 countries from 5 continents. The results suggest that while television may not kill your sex life, it is associated with some sex life morbidity. Under our most conservative estimate, we find that television ownership is associated with approximately a 6 % reduction in the likelihood of having had sex in the past week, consistent with a small degree of substitutability between television viewing and sexual activity. Household wealth and reproductive health knowledge do not appear to be driving this association.
Conflict of Interest: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Appendix
Countries, sample sizes, and survey rounds
| Survey | Sample | |
|---|---|---|
| Country | Rounds | Size |
| Afghanistan | 2015 | 40,149 |
| Albania | 2008 | 10,597 |
| Armenia | 2000, 2005, 2010 | 20,497 |
| Azerbaijan | 2006 | 10,995 |
| Bangladesh | 1993, 1996, 1999, 2004, 2007 | 60,033 |
| Benin | 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011 | 60,295 |
| Bolivia | 1989, 1994, 1998, 2003, 2008 | 77,732 |
| Brazil | 1986, 1991, 1996 | 27,672 |
| Burkina Faso | 1993, 1998, 2003, 2010 | 53,873 |
| Burundi | 1987, 2010 | 17,609 |
| Cambodia | 2000, 2005, 2010, 2014 | 68,434 |
| Cameroon | 1991, 1998, 2004, 2011 | 45,423 |
| Central African Republic | 1994 | 7,613 |
| Chad | 1996, 2004, 2014 | 40,789 |
| Colombia | 1986, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015 | 1,93,402 |
| Comoros | 1996, 2012 | 10,514 |
| Cote d’Ivoire | 1994, 1998, 2011 | 27,204 |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo | 2007, 2013 | 42,125 |
| Dominican Republic | 1991, 1996, 1999, 2002, 2007, 2013 | 84,689 |
| Ecuador | 1987 | 4,713 |
| Egypt | 1988, 1992, 1995, 2000, 2005, 2008, 2014 | 1,16,001 |
| El Salvador | 1985 | 4,861 |
| Ethiopia | 1992, 1997, 2003 | 68,696 |
| Gabon | 2000, 2012 | 22,247 |
| Gambia | 2013 | 10,232 |
| Ghana | 1988, 1993, 1998, 2003, 2008, 2014 | 46,284 |
| Guatemala | 1987, 1995, 1998, 2014, 2015 | 60,635 |
| Guinea | 1999, 2005, 2012 | 28,948 |
| Guyana | 2009 | 8,504 |
| Haiti | 1994, 2000, 2005, 2012 | 45,367 |
| Honduras | 2005, 2011 | 49,885 |
| India | 1992, 1998, 2005, 2015 | 3,85,780 |
| Indonesia | 1987, 1991, 1994, 1997, 2002, 2007, 2012 | 2,26,975 |
| Jordan | 1990, 1997, 2002, 2007, 2012 | 50,345 |
| Kazakhstan | 1995, 1999 | 8,570 |
| Kenya | 1989, 1993, 1998, 2003, 2008, 2014 | 93,497 |
| Kyrgyz Republic | 1997, 2012 | 14,457 |
| Lesotho | 2004, 2009, 2014 | 30,366 |
| Liberia | 1986, 2007, 2013 | 31,647 |
| Madagascar | 1992, 1997, 2003, 2008 | 47,186 |
| Malawi | 1992, 2000, 2004, 2010, 2015 | 95,085 |
| Maldives | 2009 | 8,611 |
| Mali | 1987, 1995, 2001, 2006, 2012 | 63,283 |
| Mexico | 1987 | 3,401 |
| Moldova | 2005 | 7,439 |
| Morocco | 1987, 1992, 2003 | 32,000 |
| Mozambique | 1997, 2003, 2011 | 43,827 |
| Namibia | 1992, 2000, 2006, 2013 | 41,901 |
| Nepal | 1996, 2001, 2006, 2011, 2016 | 51,399 |
| Nicaragua | 1998, 2001 | 29,596 |
| Niger | 1992, 1998, 2006, 2012 | 45,749 |
| Nigeria | 1990, 1999, 2003, 2008, 2013 | 1,05,961 |
| Nigeria (Ondo State) | 1986 | 4,208 |
| Pakistan | 1990, 2006, 2012 | 34,618 |
| Paraguay | 1990 | 5,819 |
| Peru | 1986, 1991, 1996, 2000, 2003–2012 | 2,57,120 |
| Republic of the Congo | 2005, 2011 | 23,012 |
| Rwanda | 1992, 2000, 2005, 2010, 2014 | 90,201 |
| Sao Tome and Principe | 2008 | 4,910 |
| Senegal | 1986, 1992, 1997, 1999, 2005, 2010–2015 | 89,149 |
| Sierra Leone | 2008, 2013 | 34,499 |
| South Africa | 1998, 2003 | 11,734 |
| Sri Lanka | 1987, 2006 | 5,862 |
| Sudan | 1989 | 5,850 |
| Swaziland | 2006 | 9,114 |
| Tajikistan | 2012 | 9,654 |
| Tanzania | 1991, 1996, 1999, 2004, 2010, 2015 | 69,109 |
| Thailand | 1987 | 6,757 |
| The Philippines | 1993, 1998, 2003, 2008, 2013 | 77,108 |
| Timor-Leste | 2009 | 17,213 |
| Togo | 1988, 1998, 2013 | 29,683 |
| Trinidad and Tobago | 1987 | 3,801 |
| Tunisia | 1988 | 4,184 |
| Turkey | 1993, 1998, 2003 | 25,099 |
| Uganda | 1988, 1995, 2000, 2006, 2011 | 45,083 |
| Ukraine | 2007 | 10,017 |
| Uzbekistan | 1996 | 4,415 |
| Vietnam | 1997, 2002 | 11,329 |
| Yemen | 1991 | 5,649 |
| Zambia | 1992, 1996, 2001, 2007, 2013 | 69,310 |
| Zimbabwe | 1988, 1994, 1999, 2005, 2010, 2015 | 69,400 |
| Full sample | 1986–2016 | 38,17,000 |
Notes: Data come from Standard Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) publicly available as of January 2018.
Trends in television ownership and sexual activity.
| Interview year: | Television | Sex in past week | Observations |
|---|---|---|---|
| (1) | (2) | (3) | |
| Panel A: Full sample | |||
| 1980–1989 | 0.36 | 0.24 | 1,36,168 |
| 1990–1999 | 0.38 | 0.25 | 9,50,340 |
| 2000–2009 | 0.51 | 0.31 | 15,17,642 |
| 2010–2019 | 0.52 | 0.35 | 12,12,856 |
| Panel B: Females | |||
| 1980–1989 | 0.36 | 0.24 | 1,36,168 |
| 1990–1999 | 0.40 | 0.24 | 8,69,655 |
| 2000–2009 | 0.54 | 0.31 | 12,35,000 |
| 2010–2019 | 0.54 | 0.35 | 9,36,027 |
| Panel C: Males | |||
| 1980–1989 | – | – | – |
| 1990–1999 | 0.23 | 0.30 | 80,685 |
| 2000–2009 | 0.42 | 0.30 | 2,82,642 |
| 2010–2019 | 0.46 | 0.37 | 2,76,829 |
| Panel D: Urban | |||
| 1980–1989 | 0.57 | 0.22 | 61,232 |
| 1990–1999 | 0.66 | 0.24 | 3,84,473 |
| 2000–2009 | 0.76 | 0.29 | 6,82,354 |
| 2010–2019 | 0.79 | 0.32 | 5,18,689 |
| Panel E: Rural | |||
| 1980–1989 | 0.18 | 0.27 | 74,936 |
| 1990–1999 | 0.20 | 0.25 | 5,65,867 |
| 2000–2009 | 0.32 | 0.32 | 8,35,288 |
| 2010–2019 | 0.32 | 0.38 | 6,94,167 |
| Panel F: Married | |||
| 1980–1989 | 0.35 | 0.31 | 1,00,818 |
| 1990–1999 | 0.37 | 0.31 | 7,15,329 |
| 2000–2009 | 0.51 | 0.43 | 10,19,235 |
| 2010–2019 | 0.50 | 0.51 | 7,79,563 |
| Panel G: Not married | |||
| 1980–1989 | 0.37 | 0.04 | 35,350 |
| 1990–1999 | 0.43 | 0.06 | 2,35,011 |
| 2000–2009 | 0.53 | 0.05 | 4,98,407 |
| 2010–2019 | 0.55 | 0.07 | 4,33,293 |
Notes: Data come from Standard Demographic and Health Surveys. Entries in Columns (1) and (2) are sub-sample means. “Television” and “Sex in past week” are indicator variables.
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