The Association of Gender Role Attitudes and Risky Drinking: Changes in the Relationship between Masculinity and Drinking in Korean Young Men

Abstract

Recently, younger men in Korean society tend not to view drinking as a proud feature of men who work. The relationship between gender role attitudes and high-risk drinking is expected to change accordingly. An online survey was conducted in January–February 2022, and the frequency of drinking, the amount of drinking, and traditional gender role attitudes, such as “men should be independent and women should take care of the children”, were measured. Participants were 786 men aged between 19 and 69 years. When comparing men in their 20s and 30s with those in their 40s to 60s, the younger men reported drinking relatively high amounts of alcohol in one place, and older men had a relatively high frequency of drinking. High-risk drinking was significantly higher in the older group. Gender role attitudes were more traditional in the older group and were a predictor of high-risk drinking in older men, but there was no significant relationship between the two variables in the younger age group. The results indicate that different generations have different perceptions of how men should drink. In addition to more detailed qualitative research on drinking motivation by generation, research on whether similar changes are occurring in other countries is needed.