Aussie males 'sensitive and romantic'

A survey by Askmen.com has found that, contrary to stereotype, 'typical' Aussie blokes aren't beer-swilling larrikins. Photo / Getty Images

CANBERRA - Forget the man from Snowy River.

Today's real Aussie bloke sees nothing wrong in a good cry, likes soccer and cooking at home, would rather look good than feel good, and wants to retire as a millionaire.

He supports marriage, opposes adultery but lusts after his partner's friends, and thinks the only status symbol better than a beautiful woman is a beautiful house. And he likes New Zealand wine.

But in the most intimate regions there is a sense of disappointment and inadequacy, with life in the bedroom rarely living up to expectations.

This picture of the 21st century's bronzed Aussie come from the blokes themselves, in an online survey conducted by men's lifestyle portal AskMen.com.

The site, which claims seven million readers a day worldwide and features daily sex tips and busty females along with sport, health and other issues, ran a global survey seeking men's view on what makes a great male. The 1500 Australians who responded lifted a surprising curtain on maledom in the new century.

"The survey demonstrates that, contrary to stereotype, your 'typical' Aussie bloke isn't the beer-swilling larrikin he's made out to be in the media," AskMen Australia editor Emma-Kate Dobbin said.

"Instead, he's stylish, sensitive and romantic and, yes, he has a healthy libido."

According to the survey, the thoroughly modern Aussie male has deeply conservative social values and holds fast to some of the less endearing views on women.

Almost half said being a good father and/or husband who took care of his family was the key measure of manliness and 71 per cent believed in the institution of marriage - although two-thirds thought living together before wedlock was a good test of the relationship.

Many believed that men should pay in the early days of dating, with humour and charm - in that order - as the most common tools of attraction.

One-third said they would not pursue a relationship if their girlfriends did not have "wife potential", and 65 per cent said they believed they had a soulmate, somewhere.

The traits most were looking for in a women were, in order of preference, a caring, nurturing nature, loyalty, a sense of humour, intelligence and, preferably, C-cup breasts - though most men would not change their partner's breast size even if they could. One-third said a beautiful wife or girlfriend was the ultimate status symbol. More than half preferred a swanky house.

And woe betide big eaters: 44 per cent of Aussie blokes would dump their girlfriend quick-smart if she got fat.

Once committed, almost three-quarters of survey respondents said they would not cheat on their partners - even if there was no chance of discovery - although 69 per cent said they had fantasised about sleeping with their partners' friends.

And the earth moves only moderately in the Aussie 'burbs. More than half said a healthy sex life was crucial to a good relationship, with almost 80 per cent defining "healthy" as sex several times a week. Only one-third said their sex lives met that criteria, and 40 per cent said they were only "somewhat satisfied". Half would enlarge their penis if they could.

Perhaps not surprisingly, 94 per cent said real men did cry.

Two-thirds said style was more important than comfort, and one-third have seven or more pairs of shoes.

Almost 60 per cent would continue working even if they were rich enough to stop, and about the same number said they would need at least a lump-sum A$2 million for a comfortable retirement.

Soccer is the nation's favourite sport by a mile, followed by cricket, league, tennis and rugby.