Who wears the pants

Trend reversal: young Austrians love differently

How do people meet nowadays? Which partner do they choose? And in which areas are women ahead? A recent study provides the answers.

(Bild: stock.adobe.com - fizkes )

The man brings home the money, the woman puts the food on the table and the children to bed: our view of the world in the old days is long gone. But what does it look like for Austrian couples now - a few generations later, with boomers, millennials and the like? Who wears the pants in which areas? We've done the research for you!

"In the past, more couples got together at a younger age than is the case today," says demographer Bernhard Riederer from the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW). The way people get to know each other has also changed: In contrast to the boomers, online dating plays a major role for the millennial generation. And: the position of women is changing more and more, especially among young people.

How do people get to know each other nowadays? Which partner do they choose? And in which areas are women ahead? A recent study provides information.

(Bild: stock.adobe.com - fizkes )

Specifically, "men and women born in the 1960s met more often during their education or at work", reports Riederer on the current "Generations and Gender" study by researchers from the Austrian Academy of Sciences, the University of Vienna and the University of Salzburg.

In contrast, the World Wide Web is gaining in importance among the younger generations: "Two out of ten people born in the 1990s met their first partner online."

Non-marital partnerships have also become more common, with new marriages taking place after divorces. "Overall, however, it should also be noted that the proportion of people in Austria who have never been in a relationship is very low after a certain age," says Riederer.

There are still more couples in which the man has a higher professional position than the woman. However, the opposite is already more common among younger people.

Dr. Bernhard Riederer, ÖAW/Uni Wien

Bild: Simunics/ÖAW

What's more, Austrians nowadays focus on equality: "In many respects, the partners are very similar," explains the expert. "In seven out of ten couples, the age difference is less than five years. In more than 80 percent of those surveyed, both were born in the same country."

And even if you look at the couples' education, "it's more a case of 'birds of a feather flock together' than 'opposites attract'," says the researcher.

Women on the rise in the workplace
However, there are also exceptions, for example when it comes to professions: Women and men still often work in different sectors and women are still underrepresented in management positions. "As a result, there are more couples overall where the man holds a higher professional position than the woman," says Riederer.

"However, it is striking that the reverse is already more common among younger people (18 to 29 years old)," the demographer points out: "It is therefore noticeable here that women increasingly have higher educational qualifications than men."

Couples with different countries of birth are more highly educated
In terms of origin, the survey by the researchers from Vienna and Salzburg shows that in 70 percent of couples, both partners were born in Austria. Furthermore, in heterosexual couples, the education of both partners is particularly high in those couples where only one of the couple was born here.

And the age difference is greater in couples where only the man was born in Austria.

Spoken language surprises
It is interesting to note that "nine out of ten couples speak predominantly German at home," says Riederer. And this is not only due to the fact that Germans are the largest group of immigrants in Austria or to couples in which at least one partner was born here.

Because, according to the researcher, "a good proportion of couples in which both partners were not born in Austria also speak German at home - especially if they both come from different countries".

About the study

• The "Generations and Gender" study was conducted by researchers from the University of Vienna, the Institute of Demography of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) and the University of Salzburg.
• More than 8,000 people between the ages of 18 and 59 were surveyed between October 2022 and March 2023.

What the future is likely to bring
The researchers from the Austrian Academy of Sciences, the University of Vienna and the University of Salzburg assume that the rising level of education among women will continue to make itself felt in the future.

"The proportion of couples in which at least one person has a migration background could also increase," says Riederer. "And the trend of people tying the knot and starting a family later in life is likely to continue. These developments could further increase the diversity of couples."