Growing male population could lead to increase in crime: researchers

U.K. and Chinese scientists say that an influx of unmarried men into society in the next few decades could lead to a global increase in organized crime and terrorism.

Researchers from University College London's Institute of Child Health as well as Zhejiang Normal University in China wrote a paper about the consequences of having a surplus of men in a densely populated society.

The scientists claim that couples in male-favouring cultures have bred a surplus of boys who will eventually struggle to find sexual partners.

These men - the researchers say - could end up feeling marginalized in society, as the ratio of men to women gets distorted as time goes on.

For example, in parts of China and India, there will be a 12 to 15 per cent excess of young men over women in the next 20 years, the study shows.

In most societies with a surplus of men, the researchers say, women can be more selective about who they choose to marry, which can leave the least desirable men with no marriage prospects and a lot of frustration.

The researchers say that 94 per cent of all unmarried people in China, aged 28 to 49, are male. Roughly 97 per cent of those men have not completed high school.

This marginalization can lead to increased levels of antisocial behaviour and violence, the scientists say.

But the researchers say that this situation should be improving, as a recent national survey showed 37 per cent of Chinese women had no gender preference when it came to their children.

In recent decades, women in China have been encouraged to bear sons, in order to control a massive population explosion in that country.

The researchers' study was published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Photography: Virtual Tourist

Source: Discovery Channel Reports, August 30 edition