When Men Fall Behind: A Hidden Gender Bias
In recent years, a quiet crisis has emerged: boys and men are increasingly falling behind in education and the labor market. Yet a new study shows that society is far less concerned about this trend when it affects males. Why? Because many people believe men have only themselves to blame.
In a study led by Alexander Cappelen, Ranveig Falch, and Bertil Tungodden—based on experiments involving over 30,000 Americans—researchers uncovered a striking pattern: people are less willing to support men who fall behind compared to women in similar situations.
In one experiment, participants could redistribute money between two workers. When the lower-performing worker was male, a noticeably larger share chose not to give him anything, compared to when the same situation involved a female worker. In a related survey, significantly fewer participants supported government assistance for men who fall behind than for women facing the same challenges.
Why? Many believe that men fall behind because they don’t try hard enough. This belief was much more common when the struggling individual was male—a bias the researchers call statistical fairness discrimination. Even when outcomes were identical, men were perceived as less deserving of support.
This research challenges us to reconsider how we respond to inequality. Efforts to promote gender equality for women remain essential, but the study reveals that disadvantaged men may also face an unfair disadvantage—not because their needs are lesser, but because public perception treats them differently.