This story was originally published in the Summer 2025 issue of strategy magazine

By Will Novosedlik

Soon after Vice Media’s Virtue Worldwide released findings on the “Rise of Traditionalism” among Gen Z, strategy spoke with the firm’s VP foresight Amy Davies to go deeper into the levers pulling them toward alt-right values. The firm spoke with Gen Z influencers, many of whom create content around traditionalist subcultures.

“As disparate as they sound, what they all have in common is a craving for control in a chaotic world,” says Davies. “They all reject modernity and yearn for a mythical past, when things seemed simpler. They seek structure in a world that feels completely unmoored. They fear the future.”

Let’s break it down.

Tradwives: Bread-making vs. bread-winning. This community espouses a return to traditional gender roles, where a woman’s value is rooted in homemaking and family care, rather than career ambition. Tradwives advocate for being stay-at-home mothers, embracing ultra-femininity and allowing their husbands to lead – often framed as a form of empowerment through choice.

Homesteaders: Farm livin’ is the life for me. Homesteader lifestyles range from large family farms and ranches to modest backyard plots. Many share a rejection of modernity, a yearning for simplicity and a deep skepticism of institutional authority. They are anti-big pharma, anti-big government and grow organic foods and products. Says Davies: “They have a real suspicion of globalism and western liberalism.”

Religious youth: God is back. Many Gen Zers are rebelling against their secular parents by embracing traditional religion. “There is this sense of disillusionment with godless modernity,” says Davies. They see religion as a safe space away from irony and digital nihilism. In their search for meaning and discipline, they crave a return to routine, ritual and sacred texts.

Conservative youth: If it ain’t woke, don’t fix it. Used to be that young people tended to lean left. Not these kids. For them, rebellion means an embrace of neo-conservatism and more traditional, hierarchical and nationalistic worldviews. “Fuelled by a sense that more democratic and leftist views failed to produce their promises of betterment,” says Davies, “they are drawn to a new system that promises order, discipline and meaning.”

Hustle bros: Wealth, health and testosterone. This group is driven by a sense that masculinity is under siege and must be reclaimed. “There is a certain simplicity in hustle bro culture,” says Davies. “It offers a way of how to behave as a man. Young boys are so confused in this new world.”