“Yes, the general feeling here is that young boys have become more conservative than girls. It seems as if they have developed a rejection, a counter-reaction to courses on gender issues, feminism, etc. This is reflected in the fact that they justify some violence or that they laugh or trivialize when discussing these issues,” explains Judit, a member of the youth space at the Joves de Gràcia center in Barcelona.
And it goes further: “The group matters a lot. Some have their own problems, but the majority are children of parents from the neighborhood, typical of the neighborhood, usually progressive, while they seem to have gone the other way.”
Your perception is no exception. And the ideological self-positioning of young people between 18 and 34 years old in Spain, seen in evolution from 1984 to today, throughout the entire Spanish democratic period, is experiencing a shock: if in the 80s they were the ones who They were located more to the left, now they are; And in 2024, furthermore, this gap between the two has exploded like never before and they are located on average, and for the first time, on the right.
This is indicated by data from the Center for Sociological Research (CIS), which is illustrated in the graph that accompanies this report. And this is confirmed by the results with representative samples of the young population in Spain between 15 and 32 years old from the gender psyche led by Marta Fraile, a scientist specializing in politics and gender and vice director of the Institute of Policies and Public Goods of the Higher Center of Scientific Research (CSIC), as reported to La Vanguardia.
Because, centrism, on average, wins. Historically, young people have been located in the center-left throughout the entire democratic period, although with various ups and downs when the Popular Party came to power at the end of the 90s (moving somewhat more towards conservatism), and vice versa when Socialists do it. But if the trend matters – and it does matter, there is unanimity among the specialists consulted here – the gap has now exploded. Especially because of the movement to the right of young men.
The data also coincides with other demographic figures that have attracted attention, even shocking, in recent weeks. In particular, this: 44% of men believe that equality “has gone too far” and that it discriminates against them, as detailed in January by the CIS itself. Among women, a third share it. But, beyond that, almost 52% of boys between 16 and 24 years old agree with the statement.
The extreme right is already present in practically all European countries. In some, like Hungary, it governs. In others, like France, they can see a turning point in the presidential elections. They look like fashion. And if the future belongs to young people, the data indicate that the ideological gap between young men and women is experiencing a moment of change, them to the right, them to the left, which raises doubts especially due to its consequences.
When trying to explain why, Joan Font, professor, researcher and former director of the prestigious Institute of Advanced Social Studies, explains that this gap is very likely to be part of a conservative reaction to the social change that is taking place, as happens almost always when there is a profound social change and that there is a sector of society that perceives itself to be a loser with these changes. And he himself, he recalls, has participated in recent collective investigations that indicate how in Spain anti-feminism is, along with the territorial issue, the main motivation of Vox voters, for example.
Although there are previous examples. It happened in La Vendée with the French Revolution. It happened with the Ku Klux Klan as a reaction to the fight for equality in the south of the United States. And it is partly identified in the reaction these days in the rural world to the advance of the green agenda.
The point is, however, that although the international panorama is diverse, the gap is growing everywhere in the main surrounding countries: in the US, where above all it stands out that they are moving towards more liberal positions; in Germany, where they deepen their conservative positions; in the United Kingdom, although both men and women take progressive steps; in South Korea, where young men are turning strongly to the right, according to data collected this time by the Financial Times. And although in France the extreme right does not seem to incorporate antifeminism in its programs, in others it is an important element.
In Spain, in fact, he highlights that it is above all young men who change their self-perception the most, turning towards clearly more conservative positions, “but [in all cases] there are, surely, shared elements that may have to do with with the growing visibility of feminism and with changes in the patterns of socialization and media consumption of boys and girls,” adds Eva Anduiza, professor of Political Science at the Autonomous University of Barcelona and specialized in political participation and attitudes and electoral behavior.
By this he means, for example, that young boys and girls develop many leisure moments separately; because the type of content consumed on social networks is diverse “with boys who play and girls who post”, it affects; or that, in addition, they are exposed to different influencers “where boys are much more likely to follow anti-feminists and girls to follow feminists.”
There is, however, no single cause, beyond the fact that “the normalization” of the anti-feminist and sexist discourse of far-right parties in the world is often cited, recalls Fraile, whether through social media, but also through traditional media, “especially television.” Others also include the resentment that many young men may show towards the process of change, the perception of a higher level of competition in the labor market, and even the fact that they inhabit increasingly segregated spaces in groups that are defined by their gender identity and sexual orientation.
Ernest Montserrat is the president of the Youth Council of Catalonia, he deals with a multitude of associations of those under 30 years of age, and with data from the Center d’Estudis d’Opinió in hand, in addition to his own experience at the head of the organization, he confirms the tendency that young women tend more to the left, and men, the opposite. He emphasizes, however, another key: “The more associated they are, the fewer exclusive discourses there are, and in the post-covid period, in fact, we have had a participation problem. The trend towards the extreme right in the speeches of young people worries us.”
The Spanish Youth Council confirms that participation has decreased. And also that on social networks, discourses of LGTBIphobia, xenophobia or against equality “are increasingly whitewashed and normalized,” says its vice president, Juan Antonio Báez. But there is no consensus when explaining why.
What stands out, however, is the moment in which the change click occurs. According to the graph, it is in the mid-2010s. According to the newspaper archive, when initiatives such as the movement
All of this seems to indicate that today cultural components play a central role, especially among young people, when facing the division between left and right, liberals and conservatives, which would no longer be mainly about classes or economic redistribution, but about cultural and identity conflicts, such as the role of men and women in society.
And hence the growing gap. “In the majority of countries for which there is evidence, such as Germany, the US, Poland or the United Kingdom, it is corroborated that self-definition as conservative or right-wing is associated with more critical attitudes towards racial justice, immigration, the climate crisis or feminist values,” adds Fraile.
The case of Spain is not isolated. This is, they repeat one after another, a general trend.
