Federalist Radio Hour ‘The Kylee Cast’ feat. Brad Wilcox, Ep. 32: How To Make Dating Great Again
Mar 12, 2026
Brad Wilcox, sociologist and author of Get Married, studies marriage, family, and dating trends. He discusses a national survey calling this a dating recession. He explores why young adults want serious relationships yet date less. He examines technology, parenting, ideology, and policy effects. He offers practical steps and policy ideas to strengthen dating and marriage prospects.
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Single Sex Schools and Confident Men
- Brad Wilcox observes more confident male students who attended single‑sex schools and experienced physical challenges.
- These men reported better social confidence and dating success at UVA compared with peers.
Ideology Skews The Dating Market
- Political and ideological sorting has created imbalance in the dating pool by ideology.
- Since 2014 shifts left among women and mixed shifts among men produced two liberal single women per liberal man and the reverse for conservatives.
Midas Mindset Delays Marriage Efforts
- Many young adults prioritize career and status (the 'Midas mindset') over marriage, delaying active mate‑search.
- This capstone model assumes finding a spouse after 'becoming yourself,' but dating is now harder later in life.
