A survey found that more than two-fifths of women still expect men to pay on a date. The article mentions that even when most women offer to split the bill, it’s a test to see if he will accept or not. If he accepts, then he has failed her test and she won’t see him again. This has personally happened to me a number of times, as I (naturally) always agree to her splitting the bill. However if she doesn’t want to see me again as a result, then I’ve dodged a bullet.
For those women who say “whoever asks should pay” rarely have any intention of ever asking a man out, so they know they can always get free meals by taking advantage of this rule.
In fact, more than two-fifths of women — with no difference in response by income level — say they’re bothered if men expect them to help pay.
Second, there are nuances here that may not be evident from a distance. For example, the woman may offer to pay for her own meal, but that offer can be disingenuous: Often, she expects him to decline. If he takes her at her word, he’s failed the test.
Some try to rationalize this arrangement by stipulating that whoever issued the invitation should pay. The trouble is that the man is still typically expected to do the asking. Moreover, both men and women seem to believe that it’s his responsibility to reach out after a first date to indicate continued interest.
https://www.bostonglobe.com/magazine/2016/04/13/why-are-men-still-paying-for-women-dates/RT3zjhcqD42cnJdLnOKZEL/story.html
