We are no longer talking about Cougars or the Mrs Robinson Syndrome here.
Something much more fundamental has been taking place in the last decade or so, where we are increasingly seeing more younger men finding long term relationships with older women.
Why is that? Is it a Western thing? A societal thing? A generational paradigm thing?
I discuss this phenomenon in my latest podcast episode after recently seeing a newspaper article featuring Kate Beckinsale (45) with her new man, Pete Davidson (25). That’s a 20-year age difference. Interesting I thought. Years ago, people would have used terms like ‘cougar’, ‘sugar mummy’ or the ‘Mrs Robinson Syndrome’ to refer to older women dating younger men which would have been seen as purely transactional – for sex, money or both. These still go on mind you. However, we have also been witnessing more deeper and longer-term relationships being established between these two groups (I’m taking marriage and kids folks!!). I know of several such couples personally and I am sure you probably know a few too. Of course, such relationships are not without their advantages and disadvantages.
Out of curiosity, I consulted my friend, Google and found out that there are many celebrity examples out there (age difference in brackets): Tina Turner and Erwin Bach (16 years), Hugh Jackman and Deborah-Lee Furness (13 years), Lisa Bonnet and Jason Momoa aka Aquaman (11 years), Sam Taylor-Wood and Aaron Johnson (24), Priyanka Chorpa and Nick Jonas (10), Eva Mendes and Ryan Gosling (7) as well as Emmanuel and Brigitte Macron (25 years) to mention a few. There are far more of such couples in the dating space for sure.
So….
– Why are we seeing more of these kind of long-term relationships?
– What is/are the compelling factor(s) for the people involved?
While I talk about this in my podcast, I also came across an interesting article based on findings by authors, Felicia Brings and Susan Winter who through their interviews identified 22 reasons why young men prefer older women in their book, “Older Women, Younger Men: New Options for Love and Romance”. One of the recurring points the men make during their interviews is the positive impact on their personal growth, appreciating the confidence of their partners as well as having more emotional stability (hmmm).
What do you think?