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More than half of Gen Z believe Britain should be ruled by a dictator and one in three want the military to be in charge, a new poll has found.
The findings for Channel 4 also suggest the emergence of a strong gender divide among young people and a generation that is simultaneously liberal and authoritarian.
It comes as 52 percent of Generation Z – people aged 13 to 27 – said they thought 'Britain would be a better place if a strong leader was in charge, who didn't have to worry about parliament and the elections'.
A total of 33 percent suggested that Britain would be better off 'if the military were in charge', while 47 percent agreed that 'the whole way our society is organized needs to be radically changed through a revolution '.
This compared to 33 percent of 45 to 65 year olds. The figures, based on a sample of 3,000 adults of all ages, come from polling firm Craft and will be published at a Royal Television Society event on Thursday.
They also show that 45 percent of male respondents aged 13 to 27 believe that 'we have gone so far in promoting women's equality that we are discriminating against men'. A similar percentage agreed that 'when it comes to giving women equal rights, things have gone far enough'.
Perhaps a reflection of the influence of platforms like TikTok, 58 percent of Gen Z respondents said they trusted friends' social media posts as much — and sometimes more — as they trusted establishment journalism.
Although 20th century dictators such as Benito Mussolini of fascist Italy were not directly mentioned, Andrew Tate and Jordan Peterson were the top influences cited by 42 percent of male respondents.
Top influences cited by 42 percent of male respondents include Andrew Tate and Jordan Peterson (pictured)
Italian fascist dictator Benito Mussolini (1883-1945)
Channel 4 chief executive Alex Mahon said the results “concern us all”.
About Gen Z, she added: “They are media savvy, enabled and smart, but have been exposed to the full force of the polarizing, confusing and sometimes intentional since birth.
'Gen Z controls their own understanding of 'the truth'. For many, this exacerbates social tensions and undermines the value of democracy.”
Referring to the gender gap, an 18-year-old man from Hitchin, Hertfordshire said: 'The people we are looking at are promoting the idea that the West is a falling civilisation, and that you need to start looking at other places.'
The new findings follow a separate poll published earlier this month in the FGS Global Radar report, which found that both Millennials – people aged 29 to 44 – and Generation Z were more supportive than older generations of a country being governed by someone who 'is not concerned with elections'.
The stronger wording, which labeled the system as “the best” compared to the “better” wording from the more recent poll, was still received by a total of 21 percent of Gen Z and 20 percent of Millennials who agreed with it starting point that compares to just 8 percent of baby boomers – born between 1946 and 1964.
There was division in support for the so-called 'nanny state'. Nearly half of under-35s supported using taxes and regulations to encourage healthier eating, but older voters disagreed.
More research at the start of the new year by SEGA Europe Limited found that 60 percent of Generation Z thought Adele was fit to be queen.
And last October, a Daily Mail poll found that a fifth of Generation Z Americans believed Hitler had “some good ideas.”
