"Cleaning and Cooking for My Husband" Trend... Men Who Prefer 'Submissive Wives' Have Hidden Motives [Experiment Note]

Emphasizing Traditional Gender Roles: The "Tradwife" Phenomenon

Men Who Prefer Tradwife Lifestyles Show Higher Levels of Hostile Sexism

"Linked Not Just to Personal Taste, But to Perceptions of Power Structures"

Editor's NoteOne now, two if you wait. Do you remember the marshmallow experiment that observed children's choices? Sometimes, simple research can change the way we see life. Let’s take a fresh look at our daily lives through the lens of experimental data.

Evening, as the setting sun paints the sky red. The savory aroma of soybean paste stew fills the house, and as the front door opens, a wife and children greet with, "Welcome home." Such a warm evening is likely the scene that traditional male breadwinners once dreamed of.

However, these days, with the collapse of awareness about traditional gender roles and the prevalence of dual-income households, such scenes have become a thing of the past.

Aprons on, cooking and cleaning... 'Tradwife' Content Spreading on Social Media

Is this a backlash to those changes? Recently, on platforms like Instagram and TikTok, content featuring women in aprons cooking, tidying the house, and caring for children has become popular and is being consumed as a lifestyle trend.

This trend is especially popular among certain groups of men, particularly so-called 'incels' (involuntarily celibate men who have experienced frustration or dissatisfaction in relationships with women), who are showing a pronounced preference for traditional divisions of gender roles.

However, some analyses suggest that this preference cannot simply be dismissed as a matter of personal taste. In a recent study published in the journal 'Psychology of Women Quarterly,' Professor Rachel Robnett and her research team at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, surveyed 595 American men aged 18 to 29 to examine their perceptions of tradwife culture.

'Tradwife' is a portmanteau of 'traditional' and 'wife,' referring to an online subculture that emphasizes a return to traditional gender roles. Recently, this lifestyle has been re-examined and has spread in the form of content that recreates the image of 1950s American households, especially on platforms like TikTok and Instagram.

The tradwife lifestyle is based on the premise that women devote themselves to household chores and childcare, while being submissive to their husbands. In this structure, men are positioned as the sole breadwinners and the main decision-makers in the family, and in some cases, women's economic activities are excluded altogether.

Some analyses suggest that this movement has also spread as a reaction to the so-called 'girlboss' culture, which emphasizes women's social advancement and economic achievement.

Stronger Preference for Tradwife, Greater Negative Attitude Toward Women

The study found that the more positively men evaluated the tradwife lifestyle, the higher their tendency for 'hostile sexism.' This refers to attitudes of distrust or negative feelings toward women.

The research team analyzed that the reason men are drawn to this lifestyle goes beyond a simple preference for a 'stay-at-home wife' and is closely linked to a desire to maintain traditional power structures within the household.

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"Preference for Tradwife Based on Misogynistic and Patriarchal Attitudes"

The researchers initially assumed that 'benevolent sexism,' such as the belief that women should be protected, would be the main factor. However, their analysis revealed that hostile sexism had the strongest influence. Among the elements of benevolent sexism, 'dependence on intimacy with the opposite sex' showed some correlation with positive feelings toward the tradwife lifestyle. In other words, men who believe that relationships with women provide emotional and physical completeness were more likely to evaluate this lifestyle positively.

The research team noted, "A dual attitude emerges, in which men depend on women but simultaneously feel resentment toward that situation," and pointed out that this, combined with the concentration of economic and decision-making power in men, can disadvantage women. They further explained, "Men's affinity for the tradwife lifestyle is based on misogynistic and patriarchal sexist attitudes that can cause harm to women."

This study is significant in that it is the first to systematically analyze men's perceptions of tradwife culture. However, its limitations include the fact that the subjects were limited to men in their twenties and that it surveyed general perceptions rather than groups who had actually chosen this lifestyle.

American women won suffrage in 1920, which was 50 years after men gained the right to vote. Women fought for their rights, challenging the prejudice that 'a woman's place is in the home,' and eventually won the right to vote. The renewed focus on the image of a 'submissive woman' in the United States creates a strange feeling. It seems outdated to simply call it a matter of preference, given the perspectives it contains. Confining others to certain roles and arguing about them may be a regressive attitude for our times.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.