As free speech and expression have come under assault on college and university campuses, a number of clear trends have emerged. One of the most powerful findings is that elite schools are typically less open to free speech. Further analysis reveals a troubling gender gap between male and female students: women are far more liberal and more likely to encourage silencing dissent compared to their male counterparts. This gender gap is more pronounced at elite schools—like Yale, Stanford, Oberlin, and Middlebury—which place their many graduates, who hold illiberal views about debate and discourse, into positions of power.
In 2022, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) released a survey based on the responses of over 45,000 currently enrolled students at over 200 colleges and universities. The data reveal a gender gap on a host of salient items relating to campus culture. The survey found that 41 percent of men identify as liberal, while nearly a third (31 percent) identify as moderate and 28 percent identify as conservative. Female students, on the other hand, look appreciably different, with 58 percent identifying as liberal, 27 percent as moderate, and only 15 percent as conservative. While not completely balanced, men appear to be more ideologically diverse and far less skewed than women.
The ideological gender gap becomes more pronounced at top-25 schools, as ranked by U.S. News & World Report. 55 percent of men identify as liberal, while a quarter (25 percent) and a fifth (20 percent) identify as moderate and conservative, respectively. Meanwhile, almost three-quarters (74 percent) of women state that they are liberal, only 18 percent identify as moderate, and a mere 8 percent identify as conservative.
[Related: “Faculty Speech Varies Regionally”]
The survey data also show that 57 percent of undergraduate male students nationwide can think of cases where it would be justifiable to shout down a speaker that they found objectionable. 65 percent of women, in contrast, believe that there are such cases—an 8-point difference. At elite schools, three-quarters of women (75 percent) believe that there are such cases, compared to 62 percent of men. For schools ranked outside the top 100, 55 percent of men and 61 percent of women feel the same way. There is a significant, consistent gender gap on the issue of shouting down a guest, and students enrolled at more elite schools are notably more likely to try and do so.
When it comes to the increasingly common practice of blocking access to a guest speaker, women are a bit closer to men. 33 percent of men, compared to 38 percent of women, maintain that there are situations where stopping one’s peers from hearing ideas is acceptable. Again, the story at elite schools is different. 39 percent of men at elite schools can think of such cases, while over half of the women at these schools (51 percent) can do the same—a far more significant gap, at 12 points. Among lower-ranked schools, the numbers are far smaller. For schools ranked below 100, there is only a 3-point difference (30 percent of men and 33 percent of women).
There is a clear ideological gender gap on campus today. As women continue to outnumber men in college enrollment, this gap shows no sign of dissipating, particularly at elite schools. The lopsided, illiberal ideology dominating campus discourse hinders viewpoint diversity. Outside of the gender gap, the percentage of students who accept shouting down speakers or blocking access to campus events is concerning. While women are generally more accepting of cancel culture, it is important to educate all students on the importance of challenging worldviews. A college education is supposed to be uncomfortable—we must embrace different views, not try to silence them.
Image: Adobe Stock
How ironic that the increasing influence of the “gentler sex” is turning the U.S. into a fascist dictatorship.
Women in college are definitely more accepting of cancel culture than men. Yet they seem to see no connection between their wokeness (often taken to an extreme) and their inability to establish a meaningful and lasting relationship with a decent guy.
The one fallacy in the survey is they provided percentages, not raw numbers, which can be misleading. While the survey may say 57% of liberal (I would say leftist, marxist or fascist instead) men and 65% of liberal women on campus believe shouting down a conservative speaker is okay, the participants at these shout-downs is overwhelmingly female. Percentages reflect intention, not actions.
” Women in college are definitely more accepting of cancel culture than men. Yet they seem to see no connection between their wokeness (often taken to an extreme) and their inability to establish a meaningful and lasting relationship with a decent guy. “
Yes, they hate men but somehow believe that they will find a man who loves them…
Breaking news: Tucker Carlson is no longer on FOX News.
This isn’t just limited to Higher Ed anymore….
“women are far more liberal and more likely to encourage silencing dissent compared to their male counterparts.”
NO “liberal” would EVER “encourage silencing dissent”
Can we please call these people what they really are — “fascists” or at least “leftists.”
A “liberal” holds the values of the Western Christian Liberal Enlightenment, notably that the value of the individual supersedes whatever political or philosophical disagreements you may have with the individual, and hence more speech is the solution to the latter. A liberal does not believe in silencing his/her/its critics — instead, the true liberal believes in the superiority of his/her/its cause and that “truth being stronger than falsehood, will prevail in a free and open encounter.” Memory is Mills said that, but please don’t ask me for a cite…
The purported “liberals” of today are far too intolerant to be considered liberals.
There is another issue here — I think that any decent person “can think of cases where it would be justifiable to shout down a speaker that they found objectionable.” For example, if a speaker were advocating that a mob go burn down the Chabaud House or the Women’s Center and kill everyone inside, I’d not only call the police but do everything I could to shout that speaker down. Now those not battle-hardened veterans of the tumultuous UMass Amherst campus might not instinctively do the latter, is there anyone reading this who wouldn’t call the police? Or if the speaker were advocating burning down the ROTC building or to go kill the CIA recruiter on campus?
Women tend to be more cautious then men, and I’m wondering how much of that is relevant here. I’m also wondering how much of this is appeasement along the lines of Neville Chamberlain’s “peace in our time.” An increasing number of students, particularly male students, view college more as Parris Island than anything else, something to be endured
That said, the other thing to remember is that in our culture, young men pursue young women and young women wish to be pursued. It would be an interesting topic of future research for to see the extent to which, if any, this is a factor.
However the really big question is Whatever Happened to Title IX?!?
If we have to have numerical equity in athletic programs, why not admissions?
Even if Title IX exempts undergrad admissions, it doesn’t exempt grad admissions and why isn’t parity mandated here???