🌅 Nearly a Third of Gen Z Men Think Wives Should Just Obey

SOURCE

Ipsos and King’s College London

WHAT TO KNOW

• A new global survey by Ipsos and researchers at King’s College London found 31% of Gen Z men across 29 countries say a wife should always obey her husband, more than twice the share of Baby Boomer men (13%) who say the same thing. Nearly a quarter (24%) of Gen Z men also think women shouldn’t appear too independent or self-sufficient, twice the share of Baby Boomer men (12%) who hold the same belief, while just over a fifth (21%) of Gen Z men say a real woman should never initiate sex, three times the share of Baby Boomer men (7%) who agree.

WHY IT MATTERS

• Greater shares of Gen Z men also hold more traditional views than their grandfathers regarding their own behavior: 30% of Gen Z men think guys shouldn’t say “I love you” to each other, while 43% think men should be physically tough regardless of their size. By contrast, just 20% of Baby Boomer men think guys shouldn’t say “I love you” to each other and 25% think men should be physically tough regardless of size. The share of men who think helping with child caregiving makes a man less masculine is also far greater among Gen Z (21%) than Baby Boomers (8%).

CONNECT THE DOTS

• Experts say online “alpha male” influencers have spent years targeting Gen Z boys and men, tapping into their concerns and anxieties to spread a dangerous brand of extreme misogyny with ease. The present survey also found stark differences in views between Gen Z men and women: just 18% of Gen Z women say wives should always obey their husbands, while only 15% think women should avoid appearing too independent and 12% say women shouldn’t initiate sex.