Genes may determine how early or late we lose our virginity, said Michael Winter in USA Today, at least according to a new study of twins separated at birth. “But don’t start watching your watch, kids.” The study, led by psychologist Nancy Segal, didn’t find evidence of a “sex clock,” just inherited behavioral traits, such as impulsiveness, that could be behind the age-virginity correlation.
The study’s evidence of a genetic predisposition for “sexual precociousness” is pretty “modest,” said Ewen Callaway in New Scientist. Segal found that genes accounted for a third of the differences in the participants’ age of first sexual intercourse—on average, a little older than 19—compared with roughly 80 percent for height. And the study “sidesteps” social factors, like cultural and family expectations.
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