On the hamburger bill: the half-timers defaulted to the skeet girls
Real wars have been raging lately in the Internet space around the question of how to manage money for partners starting a relationship. Some users brand girls who don't want to share expenses with guys as skaters, while others call overly rational men half-timers. "Izvestia" investigated whether the paradigm of courtship has changed and whether romance leaves the relationship if lovers discuss financial issues on a date.
Who is more skeet—makers or half - timers?
The words """" and ""half-timer" describe different stages of the conflict over money in a relationship," Vladislav Obushinsky, a public representative of the analytical agency "Pressindex", clarifies the terminology.
— The "skater girl" is more often associated with getting to know each other, a cafe, and waiting for someone to pay the bill. The "half-timer" goes beyond the first date: a significant part of the Internet messages on this topic concerns the family budget, everyday life, children, pregnancy and maternity leave. At the same time, both words are used mainly as negative labels, rather than as a neutral description of behavior," he comments.
The term ""skater"", according to the expert, is firmly entrenched in Internet folklore: the meme use of this word is more than twice as common as that of a "half-timer".
"" A study prepared by "Pressindex" specifically for "Izvestia" says that from March to the first half of September 2026, social media users mentioned the skater 85.1 thousand times, the half—timer - almost 15 thousand times. Gender-reversed variants were much less common: a skater — in 14.7 thousand messages, a half-timer — in 1.2 thousand.
— In almost half of the messages, both words are used as a negative characteristic of a particular person: 49.9% for a skater and 46.4% for a half—timer. Both words are mainly used to condemn. A negative attitude towards skydivers is expressed in 79.4% of messages, towards half—timers - in 83.7%. A positive attitude is found in 9.3% and 1.7% of messages, respectively," says Obushinsky.
The agency also draws attention to how the dynamics in the discussion of skeet has changed significantly. The number of mentions decreased from 18.6 thousand in March to 13.3 thousand in August — the difference was (28.3%). Conversations about the halves remained relatively stable: 2.2 thousand mentions in March and 2.4 thousand in August.
Obushinsky once again emphasizes that the contexts of using these terms vary, which can be traced by statistics. In reports about skeet girls, 20.6% are about dates, cafes and bill payments, 12.4% are about discussing the term itself, 9.2% are about material expectations in a relationship, and 6.9% are about gender conflicts.
— The "half—timer" appears more often in discussions of living together: 17.4% of messages are devoted to the family budget and the division of household expenses, 11.1% — dating, 9.4% — children, pregnancy, maternity leave and parenthood, 8.9% — the 50/50 model and gender roles, - explains the specialist.
""Skater"" has become a much stronger meme, according to the study: comic use was detected in 25.6% of classified messages, compared to 10% of "half-assed" messages. """"The skeet girls are offended," "the final boss of the skeet girls," "the skeet girl in the natural environment." Regarding """half"" there are: "these half-timers again", "half-timers have become more active", "the everyday life of a half-timer".
""Skeet"" remains much more common in general: during the study period, it was used almost six times more often than "half-assed", the representative of "Pressindex" notes. However, from March to August, the number of mentions of skeet girls still decreased, while the half-hatters continued to be talked about steadily.
Should a man pay for everyone
Sergey Volkov, a clinical psychologist and sexologist, associates the appearance of a galaxy of men referred to on the Internet as sex workers with the natural result of the modern economy.
"Many people see a psychological aspect to this issue, but the psychological manifestations of society directly depend not only on internal, biological factors of a person, but also on the external environment," he points out.
The paradigm of beautiful courtship, in which the man is the breadwinner and the woman is the keeper of the hearth, began to collapse by the 80s of the last century and had completely collapsed by the 2000s, the expert recalls. The change of eras, when previous attitudes instantly became obsolete, left a big mark on the psyche of people.
— The boys were told: "Love doesn't care what kind of jeans you have." And the girls in the yard were mocking: "Don't come near me, you're dressed like a bum." At that time, the children quickly realized that money was what we bought pasta with today and our stomachs didn't hurt from hunger, and love was something about suffering, like Dostoevsky and Chekhov, and like mom crying in the kitchen because of dad," explains the source..
The term "half-assed" appeared around the beginning of the 2020s, when those who were first branded with this word were 20+ years old. Volkov considers these young people to be the last generation to be inspired by the idea that a man always pays.
— And they are the first to completely ignore these values, because they practically do not work economically anymore. And survival depends on the economy. Money as a resource is now hard to come by, competition has increased, and a modern young man can afford less than his great—great-grandfather at the same age, he argues.
The average modern young man pays at least half of his salary for rental housing and not everyone can save up for their own real estate, the specialist clarifies. But his grandfather, at the age of 30, already had an apartment or at least a room from the company, and then privatized these square meters in the 1990s. This is just one example, if we leave out paid education and high-quality, but expensive checkups in commercial health clinics.
— Nevertheless, the demands from the girls have become tougher and are now presented in an ultimatum form. On average, according to international research, women's requests to men in monetary terms have almost tripled, and men's incomes have decreased, and this is due to the fact that they have been financially bypassed by women," continues Sergey Volkov.
Judging by the comments on the Web, the girls are most outraged by the question: "Why do I need a woman who can't pay for coffee?". The expert takes the side of the men who ask him.
— Where do women get this uncompromising demand and absolute confidence that a man unknown to her (after all, the first date), without an understandable status of their relationship, without mutual agreements, should invest in her comfort with his personal finances? It's not even the amount that is perplexing here, but the strict requirement — "must pay," the clinical psychologist draws attention to.
The main reason for a rational approach even to romantic relationships, he believes, is that modern young people know the value of money, have seen how hard it is earned, and now advocate rationality. And this is seriously intertwined with global economic problems in a macroeconomic sense, the expert adds.
— Time has really changed — there are no more images of ladies or gentlemen, there is an image of functionality, but it is impersonal. This is the price for equality and gender equality. It turns out that if a man and a woman are equal, then why pay attention to gender — we need to compare the functionality," the source said. "Izvestia".
Why are people afraid to talk about money
When a woman expects a traditional courtship model, she tests a man's responsibility and his ability to provide for a family, explains "Izvestia" candidate of psychological Sciences Alina Koroleva.
— Such behavior cannot be considered a complete guarantee of a future prosperous family life and noble behavior of a man after a possible divorce. However, if a man does not want to take on any responsibility even at the beginning of a relationship, then he will certainly not do it later," the editorial interlocutor believes.
The specialist recalls situations when a woman alone bears great responsibility, including for children. And not only moral, but also financial. For example, in cases of divorce, when a man either evades paying alimony or pays an amount that in reality is not enough to support a child. But it's not just about money, the expert emphasizes. In addition to finances, other resources are also valued — time, attention, etc.
— For example, if a woman has some kind of domestic problem, and a man just says "you can handle it," then he clearly shows that he is not going to get involved in the situation. And inclusion, practical help in solving some tasks, is the adequate equivalent of the "be generous" attitude. Conversely, when a man has some kind of emotional conflicts, for example, around a child from a previous marriage, a woman can help in making decisions that will reduce the heat," says the candidate of psychological Sciences.
In short, any relationship is based on the balance of what a man and a woman give each other. It is still important for people that partners show mutual participation in each other's lives. The areas and aspects of these investments may change, but balance remains the key to success.
— I must say that girls who look at dates in a restaurant through the prism of the reasoning "it won't work out, so at least I'll eat" are really not uncommon. And a man, of course, has the right to make sure that a woman needs more than just money from him. But if he wants to split the bill in half, it's better to let him know before the meeting. Then it will be an honest offer, to which the woman either agrees or not," the Queen suggests.
She also points out that when people get to know each other, they often avoid discussing their financial views, but money is a very important area of life, and the sooner everything can be discussed, the better.
— Now they are increasingly moving away from the postulate "love is the main thing, and the rest is not important." The quality of relationships is gaining more and more weight, and for this it is important to have a convergence of views on the main areas of living together," the expert says.
If people's views are diametrically opposed, then such an acquaintance will have no prospect of developing into a high-quality stable relationship.
At the same time, according to the clinical psychologist, the strengthening of the trend towards "twinning" is not so terrible, since now most families are built on the basis of an equivalent partnership.
— Yes, women themselves are not ready only for the role of wife and mother. They want to be successful both in work and in finance. Sometimes a woman cannot count on a man, and a solid financial and social position gives her stability and freedom in decision-making, including in the case of leaving her tyrant husband," the specialist notes.
"Romance" based on the need to "conquer" and "achieve" is actually a compulsion to a relationship, Koroleva emphasizes. Getting to know each other, paying attention to the similarity of values and views on life is more honest.
— Romance does not go anywhere, people still attract the attention of the opposite sex, and this attention is now valued especially highly, — she summarizes.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
