According to a series of 2023 YouGov polls, Americans’ favorite romantic comedies include “Pretty Woman,” “Sleepless in Seattle” and “16 Candles.”
In these and many similar romantic comedies, the plot is very simple. The female protagonist pursues the male, and they end up together, often after a series of strange encounters. end. This metaphor reflects long-held beliefs about the power relationship between men and women.
“There’s kind of a stereotype that women want or need relationships more than men, and they tend to get into relationships faster,” said Justin Lehmiller, a senior research fellow at the Kinsey Institute.
However, a recent survey of 2,000 American singles conducted by DatingNews.com and the Kinsey Institute debunks that claim.
According to the survey, more than a quarter of men (28.6%) said they would start dating earlier and 18.8% would get married sooner. In comparison, 18.8% of women said they would get married sooner and 13.7% of women said they would get married sooner.
Kinsey’s findings suggest that men’s motivations are financial, and that they will be more likely to accelerate these milestones to save money.
And that’s not surprising given the current economic climate, where recruitment and hiring are slowing and tariffs are driving up prices. But experts say that’s not all.
There’s kind of a stereotype that women want or need relationships more than men.
Justin Lehmiller
Senior Researcher, Kinsey Institute
For straight men in particular, “romantic relationships really are the main source of social and emotional support,” Lehmiller said. “And when men don’t have that in their lives, we find that their level of psychological well-being is low.”
Jeff MacDonald, a solo researcher and professor of psychology at the University of Toronto, knows this trend all too well. McDonald’s MacLab focused on the happiness of single people and found that women are more likely to be happy single than men.
“Women are better at finding that support through friendships and family relationships,” McDonald says. “Men tend to struggle with it more themselves.”
That may be the result of cultural pressures, Lehmiller says.
Traditional notions of masculinity “limit when and how men can express their emotions,” he says. “So they don’t tend to be as close to their male friends or have other people in their lives that they have close relationships with.”
Romantic relationships help men meet such needs.
Researchers aren’t the only ones observing men’s eagerness to be a couple. Kyle Scheinkman has been working at relationship coaching firm Relationship Hero since 2018, first as a client coach and now as the Director of Coaching.
The company’s 100 or so coaches primarily provide relationship-related services, from strengthening relationships to helping people find partners.
“Generally speaking, men are more likely to sign up for coaching,” he says. “They are more likely to receive more sessions and spend more time coaching in the long run.”
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