Poll: Should men be expected to pay for dates?

A couple enjoy a dinner in the 70s. Is it still appropriate for a woman to expect a date to pay for all her meals? (Getty Images)

Has the dating game changed to keep up with greater gender equality? That was the question asked by a new study presented to the American Sociological Association over the weekend, which drilled down into the attitudes men and women hold to footing the cost for a romantic one-on-one.

Men were expected to pay for dates in the days when they cornered the job market. Now, with roughly the same proportion of men and women in the US labour market, the researchers wanted to see if the prerogative has shifted accordingly.

The survey canvassed 18,000 unmarried, heterosexual men and women to find an answer:

* 84% of men and 58% of women said that men paid for most dating expenses.

* 39% of women hoped men would not ask them to contribute.

* 44% of women were annoyed when men “expected” women to pay.

* 44% of men said they would stop seeing women who never pay for dates.

Where do you stand? Should men still be expected to pay for a date, at least at the start of a relationship? Or is this a relic from a bygone era? Take the poll, and let us know in the comments below.