Young teenagers sceptical about same-sex marriage and trans rights, study suggests

A new study has found that young Brits in ‘Generation Z’ were more likely to describe themselves as “conservative” when it comes to marriage and gender.

The study, which was conducted by brand consultancy agency the Gild and published in The Times, found that respondents from Gen Z – those born after 2000 – were more socially conservative on a number of issues than any other age group except over-70s.

Researchers spoke to over 2,000 people on a range of issues, and found that 59% of 14 and 15-year-olds were “on the conservative end of the spectrum” when it came to issues such as same-sex marriage, transgender rights and cannabis legislation.

Meanwhile, 83 per cent of Millennials (roughly born between 1980-2000) and 85 per cent of Generation X (roughly born early 1960s to early 1980s) respondents described themselves as “quite liberal” or “very liberal” on the same issues.

It was also found that this age group were more prudent with regards to money and saving than any other generation except for those born before 1945, with 22% of Generation Z respondents saying that they do not spend money on “unnecessary, frivolous things” – while 40 per cent of baby boomers said “money is made to be spent”.

According to The Times, Sir Mark Walport, the government’s chief scientific adviser, has suggested that “digital immersion” had a profound impact on young people, with social media and computer games meaning that young teens had “less time and opportunity to participate in traditional risky behaviours,” while also leading to them being exposed to more “hate content online.”

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