Take for instance, the ideas of the ideal man and woman. The old ideal of a man is that he's heterosexual, independent, resourceful, responsible, generous, emotionally, mentally and physically strong, courageous, never cries or expresses negative emotions, assertive, protective and a good father. The old ideal of a woman is that she's heterosexual, beautiful, sexually desirable but demure, modest and chaste, virtuous, passive, caring, loving, emotional, wise, an excellent communicator, accepts a role that is subservient to her husband, is naturally good at and enjoys domestic chores and mothering, is self-effacing and never greedy.
The new ideals are closer to androgenous - and in my view, even though the models are still experimental, both men and women in these kinds of partnerships tend to be much happier. The new ideal for both men and women is that they each get the highest education they are capable of, and share the load of earning income as equally as their skills and professions allow. Both are expected to be assertive, responsible, caring, loving, emotionally expressive, equally open and intimate with each other, good communicators, and share the domestic and parenting tasks equally.
One thing I'm confused about is whether it is now acceptable for women to take the initiative in sex, dating and matters of love - or whether women who do so are still dismissed as tarts, sluts etc, never taken seriously. Is there still a double standard that is kept even quieter than in past eras? Also, is there a double standard about married people having affairs? Do married men think it's okay for them to stray, but if a woman strays she's the town bicycle, the spawn of the devil, not worth anything as a mate?
It takes time for the reasoning to filter down through the majority, sometimes 50 - 100 years. There is always a portion of the population who are - by upbringing, temperament or age - inherently conservative, afraid of change, unwilling to test new ideas, methods, values, foods, technologies etc, even repulsed by anything unfamiliar. At a guess, I'd say this applies to about 15-125% of most populations - though I think rural populations tend to be more conservative than cities.
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