Recent findings suggest that genes linked to recklessness and impulsive behaviour may also influence the age at which a person first engages in sexual intercourse.Nancy Segal, a psychologist at California State University in Fullerton, led a study of 48 pairs of separated twins and 23 individual twins and discovered that genes can determine up to thirty percent of the variation in participant age at first intercourse.
There isn't any particular gene which indicates a particular age for virginity loss; instead a variation of a gene for dopamine reception is linked to both age of first intercourse and reckless, impulsive behaviour.
A factor which makes it harder to discern the true effect the genes have is the social environment and family situation of the individual. The researchers found that participants born before 1948, now aged 60 or more, were more likely to have a higher age of first intercourse than participants born in the 1960s or later. The social situation in the 1960s was much more open to younger people engaging in formerly adult activities, and thus the age for virginity loss dropped.
Also noted was that girls who were depressed or came from difficult family environments were more likely to lose their virginity earlier than those from happier homes.
It is a sign of the times that recklessness and sexual activity are so linked; procreation was originally for reproduction, and not a particularly risky activity.
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