“Would you rather be stuck in a forest with a man or a bear?”
That was the question asked of women earlier this year that fueled a monthslong debate about the #MeToo movement and the facts surrounding the relative danger posed by men, and bears, to women.
Many men were offended by just how many women chose the bear over the man, but as new data produced by Daniel Cox of the Survey Center on American Life shows, the likelihood that a woman would choose the man over the bear was not random.
According to his analysis of Gallup polling from 2020 through 2023, there is a huge gap between married and unmarried women when it comes to fear of being a victim of sexual assault. These numbers are all for women under 50.
According to Gallup, 39% of single women “frequently” worry about being sexually assaulted compared to just 16% of married women. An additional 24% of single women “occasionally” worry about being sexually assaulted compared to 23% of married women. Adding those up, while 63% of single women “frequently” or “occasionally” worry about sexual assault, just 39% of married women do.
That is a massive gap in perception.
But it is also driven somewhat by reality.
As most people know, women are, unfortunately, much more likely to be sexually assaulted by someone they know than by a complete stranger. What most people do not know is that marriage serves as a strong protective institution for women.
Married women are far less likely to be the victim of domestic violence than unmarried women. One 2018 study of domestic violence incidents in Philadelphia found that 80% of all intimate partner violence, which includes husbands, current boyfriends, and past boyfriends, is committed by unmarried male partners.
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This reality is no doubt, in part, what is fueling unmarried women’s fear of sexual assault.
No woman should have to live in fear of her bodily safety, which is why we as a society need to be doing everything we can to make it easier for young men and women to get, and stay, married. It would mean safer women with a lot more peace of mind.