How to end the hook-up culture: An economic and institutional examination of the hook- up culture on college campuses

Abstract

The hook-up culture that exists amongst modern day college students is a well- documented phenomenon in sociological, psychological, and gender studies research, but little to no research exists examining such a culture from an economic or institutional perspective. This paper provides a definitional summary of the literature on the hook-up culture, examining its social norms, origins, and harms, and adds that the hook-up culture can be conceptualized as an economic club good. Borrowing upon Gerry Mackie’s work, it then argues that the hook-up culture can be viewed as a societal convention analogous to the historic Chinese practice of footbinding and the modern day practice of Female Genital Mutilation. It analyzes this convention using Schelling’s formulations of social coordination problems, arguing that the “hook-up convention” is an inferior social equilibrium compared to the superior “dating convention.” Furthermore, the hook-up convention presents a social coordination problem for those involved. The paper then provides three frameworks for “solving” the harms the hook-up culture propagates.