Significant age disparity in sexual relationships has been and remains a feature of couples in many cultures and societies. The most common pattern in heterosexual couples is an older man with a younger woman.^[1] This may be brought about as an arranged marriage, or either member may pursue and initiate this relationship. Relationships involving a younger male and an older female also exist, and while not as common, have become considerably more common in recent years.^{citation needed} Homosexual relationships of both sexes may also exhibit age disparity; when between an adult male and adolescent boy, the term "pederasty" is sometimes used, especially in European historical context. In extreme cases, age disparity may be seen as dysfunctional (a paraphilia) if such relationships are pursued to the exclusion of all others and to the detriment of the partners. Sexual relationships involving an adult or adolescent and a prepubescent child are defined as child sexual abuse in most societies.^[2][3]

Motives

Factors leading into a search for a younger individual with whom to share an intimate relationship can vary wildly. A common perception is that younger mates serve the purpose of a "trophy", or object of status.

Many psychologists study the phenomenon of age disparity, and have observed certain extremes of this behavior.

• Chronophilia is a general term, applied to any age-related preference that is outside their own age group.
• Ephebophilia is the attraction of older individuals to adolescents.
• Infantophilia is the attraction of older individuals to small children (ages ranging from 0 to 5).
• Pedophilia is the attraction of older individuals to pre-adolescents.
• Gerontophilia is the attraction of non-elderly individuals to the elderly.

Age disparity as paraphilia

There is also the issue of whether all age-disparate relationships fall under the definition of paraphilia. Individuals who exclusively pursue age-disparate relationships are generally classified by psychologists as parasexual, that is, their behavior is qualitatively different from the norm. Individuals who occasionally pursue age-disparate relationships are not included in this category, except in the popular press. As is speculated with other practices considered paraphilia, sexual imprinting may play a role in age-disparate relationships.^{citation needed}

The "half-your-age-plus-seven" rule

Graph of the "Half-Your-Age-Plus-Seven" Rule

The "half-your-age-plus-seven rule" is one rule of thumb defining a mathematical formula to judge whether the age difference in an intimate relationship is socially acceptable.^{[4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11]} Mathematically speaking, the rule is:

25% either way rule

An alternative to the "Half plus Seven" Rule listed above, there is also a less well known rule - 25% either way.
Therefore, if a male is 24, he is allowed to target females between 18 and 30.
If a male is 40, he is socially allowed to go for females between 30 and 50.

Slang terms

A number of slang terms exist to describe pairings in which one individual is much older than the other:

• Boy toy is slang referring to a much younger boyfriend or husband of an older woman.
• Cradle Robber is slang referring to a man or woman involved with a much younger individual.
• Chickenhawk describes an older gay man who sexually pursues younger males, i.e. "twinks"/"chickens" or underage boys. The term was used as the name of a television documentary on the subject of NAMBLA.^{citation needed}
• Cougar refers to an older woman, usually in her 40s, 50s or 60s who usually sexually pursue men in their 20s and 30s.^[12] The term has been used by TV series such as Living With Fran (in the episode "The Reunion"), 30 Rock (in the episode "Cougars"), How I Met Your Mother (in the episode "Aldrin Justice"), Two and a Half Men (in the episode "Waiting for the Right Snapper"), Supernatural (in the episode "Red Sky at Morning"), the NBC reality TV show Age of Love, CBC's jPod, One Tree Hill ,Law & Order: CI (in the episode "Betrayed"), and My Boys (in the episode "John, Cougar, Newman Camp"). In film, it was used in 2004's National Lampoon's Going the Distance and in 2007's Ocean's Thirteen. The popular Web-comic Penny-Arcade featured a comic strip about 'Cougars' in a 2008 strip titled "The Woods - Part Three". The 2007 film Cougar Club was dedicated to the subject: its plot was about two males creating a club where parties are thrown where male members get the chance to meet and have sexual encounters with older women. Additionally, the website funnyordie.com posted a video on the subject starring Hunter Parrish, titled "Cougar 101 with Hunter Parish."^[13]
• MILF an acronym of "Mother [or 'Mom'] I'd Like [to] Fuck", first popularised by its use in the 1999 film American Pie, refers to a sexually desirable older woman, though not necessarilly one who has children. The term is used frequently as a descriptor of pornography featuring older women. By 2008, the term was familiar enough to be used on the television series 30 Rock without necessitating its definition which would have violated Federal Communications Commission rules; the episode "MILF Island" depicts a fictional reality series of the same name whose tagline is "20 MILFs, 50 eighth grade boys, no rules."
• Jailbait refers to a sexually attractive person, female or male, below the legal age of consent. This designation connotes enticement to endanger oneself of being prosecuted for statutory rape.
• Lolita refers to a sexually precocious young girl who is the object of desire of a significantly older man. As used in the English language, the term refers to the title character of Vladimir Nabokov's novel Lolita, who is referred to by the book's narrator, Humbert Humbert, as a nymphet. While "nymphet" is still used to refer to younger children, "Lolita" has come to be applied to older adolescents and young women in the context of pornography.
• May-December romance is a romance in which the age differential between the two adults is wide enough to risk social disapproval.
• Sugar Daddy refers to a rich, usually older man who offers money or gifts to a less rich, usually younger person in return for companionship or sexual favors. This differs from prostitution in that the older man is usually the sole financial provider to the younger person. In Japan, there is a loosely similar practice known as enjō kosai.
• Sugar Momma is essentially the reverse of a Sugar Daddy - a rich older woman that spends lavishly on younger men for companionship and sex.
• Chihuahua* is a younger woman who dates men 50 years and older. Chihuahuas are pampered, petted, and taken around by their owners.^{citation needed}

See also

References