What you probably already know: Young men have been influenced by the constant exposure to social media, and new research suggests trends like “trad wives” and the “masculinity” movement are normalizing misogynist behavior. A global study released March 5 found that nearly one-third of Gen Z men agree that a wife should always obey her husband and a full third say the husband should have the “final word on important decisions.” By contrast, only 13% of Baby Boomer-age men agreed that the wife should obey her husband. The study polled 23,000 people in 29 countries including Great Britain, the U.S., Brazil, Australia and India.
Why? The study found that, in addition to holding more conservative views on gender roles, Gen Z men also upheld stereotypes about men. When it comes to taking care of children, 21% of Gen Z men believe it makes them less masculine, while only 8% of Baby Boomer men agreed, and 43% of young men said they should try to be “physically tough, even if they’re not naturally big.” At the same time, young women are becoming more liberal, with the most recent Gallup poll showing 40% of Gen Z women identify as liberal, compared to 28% in the early 2000s.
What it means: “It is troubling to see that attitudes towards gender equality are not more positive, particularly among young men,” said the Honorable Julia Gillard, chair of the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at the King College of London Business School, which produced the study. “Not only are many Gen Z men putting limiting expectations on women, they are also trapping themselves within restrictive gender norms.” One of the study’s authors, Professor Heejung Chung, said that she believes the more conservative views is this generation’s “way of making sense of the world” and holding onto “the power they’ve seen their fathers and grandfathers have.”
What happens now? Social media influencers and politicians who want to tap into the frustrations and grievances of this younger generation for their own gain — whether politically or financially — are empowering men to "reassert their dominance,” Chung says. But when those views aren’t shared by their female peers, it can be frustrating for them. The report should come as a warning sign, the authors note, as social isolation and suicide rates among young men are on the rise. In the U.S. they have reached critical levels: Suicide rates are four times higher for men than women, an increase of 30% in the last 15 years.
