Third of Gen Z men believe 'wife should obey husband'

Gen Z males (born 1997-2012) were twice as likely as baby boomer men (born 1946-1964) to have traditional views on decision-making within a marriage

Almost a third of Generation Z men and boys think a wife should obey her husband, according to a global survey of 23,000 people that found young men hold more traditional views about gender roles than older generations.

A third (33%) of Gen Z males also said a husband should have the final word on important decisions, according to the 29-country survey, which included Britain, the US, Brazil, Australia, and India.

It found that Gen Z males (born 1997-2012) were twice as likely as baby boomer men (born 1946-1964) to have traditional views on decision-making within a marriage, with just 13% of men in the older cohort agreeing that a wife should always obey her husband. Among women, 18% of Gen Z and 6% of baby boomers agreed.

People of both genders in Indonesia (66%) and Malaysia (60%) were most likely to agree with the statement, compared with 23% in the US and 13% in Britain.

The annual research of over-16s was conducted by Ipsos and the Global Institute for Women’s Leadership at King’s College London and revealed a stark difference in the beliefs of different generations of men when it comes to gender roles:

Almost a quarter (24%) of Gen Z males think women should not appear too independent or self-sufficient, compared with 12% of baby boomer men.

Attitudes toward sexual norms also differed sharply across generations, with 21% of Gen Z males thinking a “real woman” should never initiate sex, compared with only 7% of baby boomer men.

More than half (59%) of Gen Z males said men were expected to do too much to support equality, compared with 45% of baby boomer men. For women, the proportions were 41% and 30% respectively.

The results of the survey also suggested Gen Z males have more traditional expectations of their own behaviour and choices. For example, 30% of Gen Z males believed men should not say “I love you” to their friends, compared with 20% of baby boomer men and 21% of Gen Z women, while 21% of Gen Z males believed that men who took part in caregiving for children were less masculine than those who did not, compared with 8% of baby boomer men and 14% of Gen Z females.

- The Guardian