>>17487175>the notion […] is preposterousNot preposterous at all. It's a combination of both.
However, I don't know any incels personally—only a few who I've talked to as acquaintances who I suspect are incels. Therefore, I wouldn't know. Having said all of that…
I agree with you that the phenomenon has been caused largely in part by the societal changes, but I also strongly believe that pornography has contributed to young men having a skewed view of women—both in their expectations for a girl to lose their virginity or break the dry spell with, as well as what they think women are like.
>Stricter social norms around romantic and sexual behaviourThis is absolutely true. That's not to say the other things you mentioned aren't, but this is glaringly obvious. I grew up (and I did so very fast) during a time when things were definitely different, and the guys today absolutely have a harder hill to climb.
>The opportunity-rich dating environment enabled by social mediaSocial media in general has ruined dating in many ways. Mostly, it has rewarded the most dedicated (read: addicted) men who constantly keep up with anywhere from 20 to 100+ women on their accounts and reply/react to their posts on a daily basis.
Women are obsessed with social media. When they see a guy they think is cute, but he doesn't have a big following on his accounts and isn't super active, they see this as a negative; they think something must be wrong with him. This has left a TON of decent men in the dust.
…and yes, there is a TON more.
