Your Opinion – We had quite the response to the segment this week as we asked our readers what they thought about the topic below. It is often regarded a societal norm for men to be first to make a move when it comes to a relationship. Here’s what our readers had to say about it.

Why don’t women often make the first move?

Grace - Because it's more convenient for us to stick to the stereotype expectation. It's also a matter of ego and if turned down it's even more embarrassing than a guy being turned down because of the very fact that it's taboo to begin with. It's largely due to social pressure and afraid of being judged. No woman wants to be classified as desperate. Even though it's perfectly fine when a guy does.

Dylan - In my opinion women don't make first moves in Sri Lanka because the belief is that it makes them look desperate and need for attention. But the truth is that both genders have equal opportunities to make the first move.

Muzaina - Firstly, I guess it's out of fear of being turned down, then I guess it's because women usually feel like it's the norm for the man to make the first move, because it establishes their role as a confident man in a potential relationship. It could also be because it makes women look desperate or cheap, which I personally don't think is true. I guess it's mainly because every woman has a certain level of insecurity, due to which they don't feel confident enough to approach a man.

Tae Hun Kim - I think women DO occasionally make the first "move"... Guys are just too dumb to see it.

Pavith -  If they make the first move they can't blame men for not making the first move. 

Shenali - From her birth a woman is taught to take the backseat to a man and this is 'grilled in to her' until she grows up. If we take proposing of marriage for example, almost every book and movie shows a guy getting down on his knees to propose but if a girl does that she's either 'too forward' or the guy is a coward. It's embedded into our culture and norms and we just accept it because we're too scared about what people will say.

Nishad - "inadvertently women and men subscribe to the idea that men must take a descisive masculine role - which by default means that women must be passive. It's not discretionary, we are simply built into it. 

Hazma - Because then you get labelled as a whore, trying to get with every man you see. People aren't that open-minded, they never have been. Too much stereotyping.

Adrian - Probably a benchmark set by the society and there for of people circling around it, also a woman is set at a place where they are not the ones to reach out for as to make such a choice. My personal opinion about it is that everyone should be kept at a position where they are able to make a move as they please and not bound by society or culture to such situations.

Ravi - I guess years of guys making the first move outs a lot of pressure into the process. So it would be nice if the girls could alleviate some of that by making the first move from time to time.

Jhannieque - "I really don't know why we don't. I think its tradition or chivalry for me. And also maybe I'm bound by society's outlook on what it would make me look like if I were to be that forward. Maybe if i was from a different culture it'd be different. but here I'd rather keep my standard."

Indrajith - "I think it's because women are just hardwired by society to wait on the man. Either that or it could just be pride, you never know. But then there's also the worry that said girl might be labeled as 'too forward' - it happens.

Shehani - " I'm not sure really. I think men are more bolder in that way to go all out and get what they want. When it comes to women there's always a 100 questions that come to mind before being able to come to a decision on what to do so maybe the men just beat the women into making a move.