The Policy Institute

Young men and women have more in common than divides, say public – despite gender gap in perceptions of tension and optimism about their futures | King's College London The public see much less tension between women and men than between other groups, but young people are still divided by gender on some questions

Catch up on our recent research with @ipsosintheuk.bsky.social, which finds increasing recognition among young men of the challenges facing young women and relatively low levels of perceived tension between the two genders

"There has been a lot of focus recently on the supposed increase in division between men and women in the UK, particularly young men and women – but our study suggests this positioning of gender divides as a new front in a UK 'culture war' is overblown"

💬 @bobbyduffy.bsky.social

UKICE Lunch Hour: Assessing the budget YouTube video by UK in a Changing Europe

📺 Watch the full discussion, where @kingscollegelondon.bsky.social academics and other experts assess Wednesday's Budget ⬇️

"The government is clamping down on migration for work and study in a way which is certainly going to have negative impacts for growth"

@jdportes.bsky.social of @ukandeu.bsky.social explains why the latest ONS figures showing a huge drop in net migration will impact economic forecasts

“If we want to build a fairer, more inclusive society, we need to understand it first. That’s the power of social science.” Watch Julia Gillard discuss the vital role of social science in a divided world in our 2025 Campaign for Social Science Annual Sage Lecture. 📽️➡️ acss.org.uk/news/watch-t...

“Training that works”: The impact of scenario-based police programs Training officers with scenario-based programs can lead to less use of force without compromising their safety, a UK study found1, and several police training

🚓 👮 "This is training that works...It builds on conflict-management techniques and is effective in reducing force, without increasing the likelihood that an officer themselves is harmed"

@michael-sanders.bsky.social discusses our research into the use of force by the police ⬇️

YouTube video by Cambridge Law Faculty Reflections on the Brexit Revolution: 2025-26 Mackenzie-Stuart Lecture

📺 He argues the vote to leave the EU provided a unique opportunity to address the economic and political discontent that fuelled support for Brexit – but the fact this opportunity was not taken has merely contributed to the growing appeal of populism

Watch in full ⬇️

"Brexit, in other words, is both cause and consequence of a lot of what is going on in our politics today."

🗣️ @anandmenon.bsky.social of @ukandeu.bsky.social – based in the Policy Institute – recently gave his reflections on the "Brexit Revolution" for the Mackenzie-Stuart Lecture at Cambridge Uni

Young men and women have more in common than divides, say public – despite gender gap in perceptions of tension and optimism about their futures | King's College London The public see much less tension between women and men than between other groups, but young people are still divided by gender on some questions

Catch up on our latest culture wars study with @ipsosintheuk.bsky.social, on tensions and common ground between women and men ⬇️

♀️And in the UK, it is young women (63%) who are actually more likely than young men (50%) to say their gender can have their reputations destroyed by speaking their minds.

Young women are also much more likely to say their gender should be represented and valued more in society

🇺🇸 🇬🇧 Young men in the UK generally feel less aggrieved about their position in society than their American peers

🗣️ Half of UK men aged 18 to 29 agree “guys can have their reputation destroyed just for speaking their minds these days” – compared with two-thirds of American men the same age

🔊 "this government... will need to think very carefully about how our human rights framework is currently operating"

🎧 In episode 9 of the School for Government podcast
Theresa Villiers discusses the changing role and perceptions of the European Convention on Human Rights in modern society

🔗 ⬇️

📊 And 29% of people said int'l students should be included in the UK government’s published figures for “immigrants” – far lower than the share who said the same about many other groups, such as refugees and asylum seekers (70%) or those coming to live and work for the long-term (58%)

📈 When half of our sample were told how int'l students are a key driver of the rise in net migration, 30% said they would like to see fewer in the UK

📉 But when another half were asked their views with a framing that outlined the economic contribution these students make, this fell to 17%

↔️ The most common view, held by 43% of people, was that the number of int'l students should remain unchanged – although support for an increase or decrease depended on the information provided to the public...

💰 Six in 10 people felt int'l students bring a significant benefit to the British economy, while only around one in 10 disagreed

👍 Four in 10 also said the benefits for Britain of international students outweigh the costs – nearly double the proportion who said the reverse

Majority say international students bring significant economic benefits, study finds | King's College London Only one in 10 disagree with this view

🎓 With news that a tax on tuition fees from international students is set to be included in Wednesday's Budget, it's worth revisiting our study from last year which looked at public attitudes towards these students 🧵 ⬇️

YouTube video by The Policy Institute at King's College London Julia Gillard | Campaign for Social Science Annual Sage Lecture 2025

📺 Watch her lecture in full, including responses from @yuanfenyang.bsky.social, @stianwestlake.bsky.social & @bobbyduffy.bsky.social ⬇️

@acadsocsciences.bsky.social @sagepub.com

"Social science is not just a discipline. It's a way of seeing the world, of asking the questions that matter...Without it, science risks becoming detached from society."

💬 Julia Gillard delivers the Campaign for Social Science Annual Sage Lecture

💡 A full house tonight for the Campaign for Social Science Annual Sage Lecture 2025 with Julia Gillard, @yuanfenyang.bsky.social , @bobbyduffy.bsky.social & @stianwestlake.bsky.social on the impact and role of social science in an era of polarisation

📺 Livestream: www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgLF...

Young men and women have more in common than divides, say public – despite gender gap in perceptions of tension and optimism about their futures | King's College London The public see much less tension between women and men than between other groups, but young people are still divided by gender on some questions

And read the new research here ⬇️

"20% of young men think [life] is going to be better for them than it was for men in their parents' generation. 40%... think it's going to be worse"

@bobbyduffy.bsky.social, last night, on our new research with @ipsosintheuk.bsky.social & @giwlkings.bsky.social

➡️ www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZAK...

🌎 Two of our team members, Alexandra Pollitt and Tianne Haggar, recently visited Ethiopia as part of Solace-AI – a project using AI to support policy and humanitarian responses to climate-change-related health emergencies.

➡️ Find out more: solaceai.org/ethiopia_blog

🚨 Tonight

Join us to hear Julia Gillard and expert speakers share insights on how social science can still have global impact in an era of political polarisation and widespread misinformation, public scepticism, political interference, and funding reductions

⬇️

🚨 We're calling all @kingscollegelondon.bsky.social students to share their best policy ideas with us!

💸 Share your idea with the world and win cash prizes!

➡️ Apply today: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/poli...

Young men and women have more in common than divides, say public – despite gender gap in perceptions of tension and optimism about their futures | King's College London The public see much less tension between women and men than between other groups, but young people are still divided by gender on some questions

And read our new research on this topic, published today ⬇️

💥 A full house tonight with Julia Gillard, @ipsosintheuk.bsky.social,
@giwlkings.bsky.social, @heejungchung.bsky.social @bobbyduffy.bsky.social & expert speakers on how attitudes towards issues such as feminism, masculinity and equality are evolving

📺 Watch live: www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ZAK...

Young men and women have more in common than divides, say public – despite gender gap in perceptions of tension and optimism about their futures | King's College London The public see much less tension between women and men than between other groups, but young people are still divided by gender on some questions

📚 Read the full findings in our latest report, "Deepening divides or growing understanding? Women, men and gender equality today" ⬇️

"There has been a lot of focus recently on the supposed increase in division between men and women in the UK, particularly young men and women – but our study suggests this positioning of gender divides as a new front in a UK ‘culture war’ is overblown" – @bobbyduffy.bsky.social

Compared with 2023, younger men are now more likely to feel it’s harder to be a woman than a man today: 46% now hold this view – up from 35%, driven by a doubling of the proportion of young men who say it’s much harder to be a woman, which has risen from 10% to 20%