Problematising “Lad Culture”: Defining and Tackling “Laddism” in UK Universities

The term “lad culture,” referring to dominant attitudes and behaviours in UK University contexts, will be examined with a view to rejecting the term. While the links between excessive alcohol consumption, sexual violence and bullying/intimidation can be understood with relation to gender norms, the term will be troubled. It is argued that the term “lad culture” implies similarity between disparate identities/experiences/behaviours, which ignores the continuum of behaviours and attitudes subsumed under the definition. As a result, extremely harmful behaviours are trivialised both by actors and those facing such behaviours. Qualitative findings from 8 semi-structured interviews with University campaign stakeholders are presented, recommending that support for anti-“lad culture” campaigns should be improved, insinuating that the ambiguous nature of the term “lad culture” has repercussions not only for self-defined “lads” but for those attempting to tackle associated behaviours.