Gen Z men (born 1997-2012) are more likely to hold traditional gender beliefs than older men—and far more compared to their female peers.
This is according to data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey, examined by Erin Clarke, a Research Economist at e61 Institute.
Clarke analysed how attitudes toward traditional gender norms vary by age and gender from 2001 to 2023.
These norms were captured by participants rating statements on an index ranging from 1 to 7, with 7 representing strong agreement.
An example of a statement would be: “Men make better political leaders than women do” or “It is better for everyone involved if the man earns the money and the woman takes care of the home and children”.
The analysis results show a clear trend, where on average, beliefs in traditional gender roles have been declining across generations, but Gen Z men are emerging as the exception. This is surprising, considering that younger age groups tend to hold less traditional norms, reflecting broader social and cultural change.
This pattern holds true for women, however, with younger women (Gen Z and Millenials) being the least traditional group in the data.
When considering the generational differences, Gen Z men report, on average, more traditional beliefs than both Millennial men (1981-1996) and Gen X men (1965-1980). Meanwhile women’s traditional beliefs have declined steadily across generations.
When it comes to age groups, the data shows in 2023, on average, men aged 15-24 had higher belief in traditional gender norms than men aged 25-34 and 35-44. This suggests that the difference isn’t simply generational– there’s a factor more specific to today’s young men.
Meanwhile, women of the same age are less traditional, which shows a clear difference between young men and women.
As for an explanation for the data, Clarke says there’s no single explanation.
“Some commentary points to young people engaging with different social media content, others highlight the possibility of backlash to changing gender roles. Shifting economic opportunities may also play a role,” she said.
“If the divergence between young men and women persists, it could have implications for policy areas ranging from education to labour market participation.”
With the federal election coming up, Clarke says this data is a reminder that “young voters” are not a uniform group.
“Whether beliefs about traditional gender norms translate directly into political preferences is unclear. Nonetheless, segmenting by age alone may mask important variations within a cohort. Gender is one dimension where differences are emerging,” she said.