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Young people using language: give and seek »room for tolerance«
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More than half of young people between the ages of 14 and 35 reject the gender language debate, according to a new study.
Gender is annoying, makes language complicated, often goes too far - a majority agrees with all of these statements, it is perceived as a linguistic stumbling block, "like a bumpy, abrupt hole," according to an interview by the Cologne Rheingold Institute.
At the same time, young women in particular see gender-equitable language as an important signal on the way to more equality and a more modern understanding of gender.
44 percent of all respondents consider the discussion to be important and justified.
There is also a concise interview statement on this: »For me, gender is something of a stumbling block, a bumpy piece of information that shows: we have an inequality here.«
Dissonance is more likely to occur when gendering is applied too aggressively and too strictly.
Gendering should therefore be appropriate to the respective situation as far as possible.
"In an official space, for example in the job context, gender is now almost de rigueur," said study leader Judith Barbolini of the German Press Agency.
According to the summary, a lack of gender makes employers appear old-fashioned and less attractive to younger target groups.
societal transition
For the study, 2000 young people and young adults between the ages of 16 and 35 were interviewed in cooperation with the Castenow agency, which specializes in brand management.
46 people between the ages of 14 and 35 also expressed themselves in depth psychological interviews.
One of Barbolini's most striking findings was that 27 percent of the 2,000 respondents did not clearly identify as male or female.
That doesn't mean that they all consider themselves diverse.
»But there is a great desire to stop thinking in binary categories.
Many have the attitude: ›I am me and I want to be seen as a person and not as a man or a woman.‹«
For young people, gendering reflects a changed social reality.
»But we are currently still in a transitional phase in which it is not yet fully established.
In this phase, some rush ahead, others run with them and others react aggressively," says Barbolini.
Many interviewees are not really clear what is actually intended by gender and this leads to misunderstandings.
Accordingly, more than half believe that gendering serves to establish neutrality in gender issues.
33 percent see it as an inclusion of people beyond men and women.
Only 36 percent of respondents agreed that gendering should make women more visible in language.
Overall, the following applies: »The higher the level of education, the better you know about the topic.« Women consider the gender debate to be more important than men.
In this context, Barbolini pleaded for “room for tolerance”.
Only 11 percent are in favor of enforcing gender everywhere and consistently.
»You can also try it out, play with it.
After all, the language is not fixed.
And you should always keep in mind: In which room am I standing right now, what is appropriate here?”
feb/dpa