Ofcom conducts a survey to understand the views of those engaging with manosphere content online.
Back in April, after the Netflix series, Adolescence, had been shown, the NASUWT education union surveyed 5,800 teachers to find out what was happening in classrooms. It revealed that 59% said that they believed social media and ‘manosphere’ type content has led to a rise in sexism and misogyny amongst pupils and students.
In June 2025, Ofcom released further research, Experiences of engaging with the manosphere, to explore the views of people from the ages of 16 to 50 who engage with this type of content online. Thirty-nine men and one woman answered its call for respondents to talk about their journeys into it, their views and reflections on it, and whether think harm may occur as a result.
Ofcom found recruiting subjects for the study to be a challenge, as many of those approached expressed distrust of ‘mainstream’ organisations and expressed that they thought their views would be misrepresented.
Report examines:
- who engages with the manosphere
- what makes up the manosphere
- what attracts people to manosphere content
- risk factors influencing the potential for harm.
It’s a fascinating read that educators can take much from, even though its scope is wider than school-age children.
Ofcom will seek to build on this initial research with follow-up projects throughout the rest of 2025.
