Inceldom FAQ

This page outlines questions that are common regarding inceldom.

Are all involuntary celibates male?

The term incel is an abbreviation of "involuntary celibate," a life condition with an academic sociological foundation. 'Incel' is not a unified subculture where there are members and members decide 'membership.' The incelosphere is mostly, but not entirely, male-dominated.

Under the broad definition of inceldom, that is, celibate against choice,' self-described incel women likely have medical conditions such as vaginismus, are in sexless relationships due to the actions of their partner, are extremely shy to the point of being complete shut-ins like the poetess Emily Dickinson who purportedly was sexless all her life, are possibly considered extremely weird or standoffish to the point of being deemed unapproachable by the majority of men they interact with, or, most likely, just have very high standards for their prospective male romantic partners.

Many incel forum users believe that high-standardcels should not count as incels, claiming that online dating offers plentiful dating options for women, even in terms of men seeking long-term relationships instead of 'hookups.' Many incel forum members also believe in not acknowledging fringe medical or mental conditions that would cause female involuntary celibacy, as they distract from the predominately male distribution of inceldom.

Under the narrow definition of incel, 'against will', there are virtually no female incels, but many male incels.

Owing to men's generally higher sex drive and (perhaps) their reliance on intersexual as opposed to intrasexual relationships for emotional intimacy and affection, it is also commonly claimed that maintained as a life circumstance affects men more adversely than it does for women, assuming they can be truly involuntarily celibate. Research does indicate that among singletons, women are more likely to report they 'prefer to remain single' than men do.

Are incels a group, ideology, subculture, organization, community, or movement?

No.

Incel is an abbreviation of involuntarily celibate, which is self-descriptive. Up to 28% of American young men are Incel, according to the Washington Post, depending on how strict one wants to be when defining this term. "Incel," isn't a single community any more than, for example, trans people are a single community.

As far as self-identified incels or incel forums, these communities are fractured and generally do not advocate radical beliefs unless you want to call determinism and in some cases misogyny radical ideologies. Individual philosophies like the original blackpill definition or subcultures like 4chan culture emerge on some, but not all, forums dedicated to involuntary celibates and go in and out of fashion, and there is broad disagreement on the causes and consequences in these communities.

Calling involuntary celibates a movement is like calling poor people a movement or ideology. To elaborate, 'pauperdom' is the state of being poor. This term is to poor people, what inceldom is to incels. Both are life situations, the terms' incel' and 'pauper' denote a person affected by these things. Most people would widely agree that poor people aren't a movement, nor is there a specific ideology that which they adhere. Likewise, incels and inceldom are the same in that respect.

Is inceldom composed of whitecels only?

Although self-identified incels are often stereotyped as mostly white, modern polls and surveys (and general forum usage) suggest otherwise. This poll from braincels shows that whites constitute only 28% of that forums population, with the largest racial demographic being currycel. The largest poll by the whitest forum: incels.co showed that only 50% of its members were whitecels, the rest being ethnicel, being not far off from the racial demographics of the United States.

Statistics show that the whitest English-speaking incelosphere forum is 22% more ethnically diverse at a mean rate and 19% more ethnically diverse at a median rate than the general population of the Anglosphere, making them more ethnically diverse than popular primarily English language forum form social media sites, such as Reddit, as a whole.

In terms of the racial breakdown of the prevalence of inceldom as a life circumstance, it is likely ubiquitous in polygynous societies such as Senegal and Qatar, which have the highest operational sex ratios in the world (the ratio to women to men effectively on the dating market).

In certain Western countries (and elsewhere, as Japan and China have some of the highest incel rates in the world), it appears that East Asian males are particularly prone to experiencing inceldom, compared to men of other races.

Are involuntary celibates angry or frustrated?

Involuntary celibates are human. As such, they feel emotions (negative as well as positive) just like everyone else. It's normal to feel gloomy when lacking a basic human need. Many involuntary celibates become used to their situation and, as such, are content being involuntarily celibate, which may even turn them into volcel. Involuntary celibates who take the whitepill try out stoicism and asceticism and become content with their situation. The subset of incels most likely to feel upset or depressed are probably those with a high sex drive.

Are incels violent?

In short, no. That is a stereotype nurtured by pigeonholing and broadbrushing media portrayals. Unassertiveness, being obsequious and high inhibition is quite common in involuntary celibate populations according to Henry Flynt and the researcher Brian Gilmartin, who described a subset of incels known as 'love shies'. They were generally quite sensitive and sociable men who, according to Gilmartin, had a strong aversion to violence and, indeed, conflict of all forms, which ironically may have played some role in mediating their sexual predicament.

Furthermore, the stoic and ascetic viewpoints espoused in many incel circles (especially when supplemented with the whitepill) also tend to repudiate violent viewpoints in favor of pacifism.

As discussed in the rape article and the Scientific Blackpill, murderers and violent men typically have more (not less) sexual access to women. Research shows that it is a myth that sexual frustration and longing for sexual intimacy is the main driver behind rape. Instead, rape is predominantly driven by anger and power, which are character attributes that losers, loners, shy guys and creeps lack typically. Rapists do tend to have negative views of women, endorse rape myths, and identify with a hypermasculine role, which does overlap with views in the incel subculture. However, in rapists, these views are likely rather caused by genetic factors and behavioral factors, perhaps being indicative of a general fast-life history orientation in terms of evolutionary biology, whilst internet incels are often jaded due to indifference or hostility displayed to them by women.

It is also important to note that even if many self-identified incels express misogynist sentiments, this is likely not causative of their inceldom in any way. Some research, on the contrary, indicates that highly sexually successful men, taken as a group, generally exhibit more hostile beliefs, cognitions, and views of women as compared to the male norm in this regard.

Research also shows that it is a widespread myth that exposure to "radical" ideas would increase violence (if misogyny can be considered radical at all given the very high prevalence of means to constrain female sexuality in human history). John Horgan, director of the International Center for the Study of Terrorism at Pennsylvania State University said:

The idea that radicalization causes terrorism is perhaps the greatest myth alive today in terrorism research. [...] [First,] the overwhelming majority of people who hold radical beliefs do not engage in violence. And second, "'there is increasing evidence that people who engage in terrorism don't necessarily hold radical beliefs.'"

There is some evidence that an increased rate of demotivated, sexless males causes trouble, however. As an example, in certain African polygynous groups, it was found unmarried men felt they were being treated more unequally, and thus they were readier to use violence than men belonging to monogamous groups. Strong pair-bonding between males and females is thought to be accompanied by a dramatic reduction in the male-to-male conflict over mating and increased investment in offspring.

Taken together, the overall evidence suggests the link between inceldom and violence, to the extent it exists, is rather caused by motivation and incentives set up by society rather than radicalization.

Do incels only want sex?

It is true that the only unifying trait of incels is being involuntarily deprived of sex. (However, some incels argue the word Incel has more to do with romance than sex). Regardless, being involuntarily deprived of sex does not mean that you want sex or that it is the only thing you want. Some incels only want a romantic companion; others want marriage, some want offspring, others want validation and others want the social status associated with having a partner. Some want to get a SO due to parental pressure or because they want to quell rumors that they're gay. Others want independence from their parents, i.e., "leaving the nest" that is sometimes associated with romantic relationships. Some involuntary celibates seek tax breaks and other social benefits associated with being in a partnership.

However, given all of this, it does not follow that purely non-sexual avenue of trying to help incels will help incels. Many (but not all) incels do just want sexual intimacy, period.

Why don't incels visit prostitutes?

Again, not all incels want sex (see above). For some of those who would like to, it is a common fear that they will be rejected even by prostitutes, due to ugliness, extreme social awkwardness, or the prostitute's unwillingness to sexually inititate a virgin male (which has happened on occasion to several incels) and this rejection would obviously be a large blow to their self-esteem.

Frequenting prostitutes or being a sugar daddy/mommy does not count as a sexual, romantic, or even social relationship, but rather a financial relationship. The relationship remains without sex/romance/sociability, but not without money. Even if it did count as a sexual or romantic relationship, most self-identified incels could not afford it regularly for it to improve their situation reliably. In America, at least, the cost of sex is prohibitively expensive and runs up to a $600/hour average in the major cities.

Some non-materialist incels go further to say that financial, social relationships cannot be fully sexual.

Are truecels Marxists?

Not necessarily. However, many members of the incelosphere support sexual Marxism since they see it as enabling a culture of egalitarianism in dating between gigachads and truecels.

Is inceldom new?

The term "incel" is an abbreviated version and sniglonym of the term "involuntary celibacy," whose usage reaches back at least to the 18th century. Inceldom has existed throughout human history. The phenomenon even exists in the extended animal kingdom (see animalcel).

What's the biggest misconception about inceldom?

The most common misconception is that inceldom constitutes a belief system, label, or ideology. Inceldom is simply a social phenomenon akin to homelessness and a social demographic such as the unemployed.

Are incels mentally ill?

While there is evidence that certain mental disorders (in particular schizophrenia and autism) are strongly associated with inceldom, as people with these disorders are in the minority of the general population, and men who have, or who are experiencing involuntary celibacy are quite a large group, one cannot conclude from this that the majority of incels are mentally ill. The issue of causation is also essential here, as inceldom can lead to mental despair, severe depression, a general decline in cognitive function, and substance abuse.

What is the black pill?

A black pill is a red pill with a fatalistic, defeatist, catastrophizing connotation, seeking to disclose systemic and potentially irreparable issues. Within the incelosphere and lookism community, this mostly refers to the meme that female mate choice is primarily about factors that are argued to be innate and difficult to alter, primarily looks, money, and status rather than personality. Not all self-identified incels subscribe to the blackpill or even any pill at all.

Is inceldom synonymous with the blackpill?

No. Some don't believe in the blackpill. Some don't agree with parts of it. Some don't subscribe to any 'pills.' Some involuntary celibates are purple pilled, others are bluepilled; others are red pilled or whitepilled. Most involuntary celibates are likely unaware of "pill" jargon altogether. There are also noncel blackpillers such as Catherine Hakim. However, the blackpill tends to be popular among self-identified incels.

Is inceldom related to the alt-right?

A 2022 study found that "[i]n contrast to stereotypes, incels are not more right-wing than the control group." Whites are moreover underrepresented in the English incelosphere (see the demography article). When considering inceldom as a life condition that exists all over the world, it is also a truism that most incels are not White because Whites only make up around 11% of the world population.

The reason for broadbrushing incel communities as right-wing may stem from the fact that people from the alt-right are among the few public defenders of incels. This might partly due to both the alt-right and some incel forums tending to be pro-natalist, but for different reasons. If there were some other pro-natalist movement today, they would instead probably be the public defenders of incels. Other defenders of incels outside the alt-right also exist, e.g. Angela Nagle, various MRAs, and the rest of the people in this list minus Devlin and Spencer.

Are incels narcissists?

This stereotype probably comes from Elliot Rodger's vlogs, who appeared extremely narcissistic. However, another spree killer who attributed his killings to not getting laid, George Sodini, was hyper-modest. Obviously, trying to broadbrush people who cannot get laid in this way is not even internally consistent.

The degree of genuine narcissism (albeit likely 'fragile') shown by Elliot Rodger is rare in the incel forums, and it is often born from isolation and part of a broader inability to integrate socially. Most of the United States ranks high in narcissism, but there is no evidence that incels are much more narcissistic than the average person in the USA. Those who are particularly narcissistic may use it as a coping mechanism for having no one else to love.

Are incels homophobic or transphobic?

Incels aren't a monolith. But there is some anecdotal evidence suggesting that an unspecified proportion of homosexuality is actually caused by inceldom (see homocel hypothesis). Similarly, the trans-vestigiality hypothesis also suggests that a significant proportion of transgenderism is caused by inceldom. Jailhouse gay, essentially. Except the jail is (usually female) sexual selective pressures instead of a literal jail.

Are incels misanthropic?

Prejudice can be found among both incelospherians and offline incels, including eurotophobia (misogyny), phallophobia (misandry) or misanthropy (against everyone). Online platforms designed for venting (like incels.co) are the most likely to have prejudicial tendencies, while those whose primary focus is ascending (like Looksmax.me) or as a support group (like Incelistan) are the least likely to have such tendencies.

Are truecels or incels misogynistic?

In common usage, those using the word misogyny are more likely actually to mean gynophobia. But because the word gynophobia isn't in common usage, that word isn't common. Furthermore, gynophobia is often a subset of eurotophobia, just as misandry is often a subset of phallophobia. Imperatively, desiring someone romantically or sexually whilst also hating them is oxymoronic, unless said person has a hatefucking fetish. Do incels have a hatefucking fetish? For the most part, no.

Is a singleton the same as an incel?

Being single is a symptom of inceldom as opposed to a cause. Being single does not necessarily mean one is incel. The main separation between being single and Incel is that being single can be a choice, whereas inceldom cannot. Single people also may have many sexual/romantic encounters while being single. Something incels don't experience. As such, the terms are not synonymous, in the same way that a hungry Ethiopian in famine and a person in Mallorca who is on a diet are not interchangeable.

I think I may be involuntarily celibate. What should I do?

That depends on whether inceldom is affecting your day-to-day life negatively or not. If it isn't, then great, keep doing what you're doing.

If it affects you psychologically, then consider trying to boost your self-esteem in some way, or try out stoicism (see whitepill). If it affects you physiologically, such as via sexual frustration, then consider taking antaphrodisiacs (a medicinal substance that quells the libido) or anaphrodisiacs (food supplement that suppresses the libido).

If you are male and don't live in a country with arranged partnerships, you can also try adjusting your behavior more dramatically to meet your sexual desires through hiring a personal trainer to build muscle, hiring a fashion consultant, taking pro-social photos, taking photos with pets, and/or consulting those who study lookism more broadly, and generally increasing your level of mating effort. If one does not want to try anymore, one can also advocate for incels politically, go MGTOW, or commit themselves to a life of sloth.