I understand that all (active) members on this sub are aware of the term incel.

If you have lurked on subs like r/IncelsWithoutHate r/Shortcells r/Trufemcels (by incels), and other subs on incels like r/IncelsInAction r/IncelTears (not by incels), you would know that essentially incels complain about not getting attention from the opposite gender. (I am not sure whether incels want casual sex or long term commitment, so I will not specify on it. I have seen some posts which say that OP did not get any female attention; whereas in other posts I see that OP complains that women only settle for them: an extreme example is depicted in this comic).

The question is: Which of the following is the real deal? Or is the community composition of all of the following? What is the solution for each category? (Feel free to add more categories, I will try to add them here)

  • Incels have created the problem for themselves: Their personality sucks, and so the opposite gender does not find them attractive.
  • It is real that, (for the lack of better term), the Sexual Market Place is very skewed in favour of women, and it is extremely difficult to get female attention for men who are any (or multiple) of the following: unattractive, short, awkward, weird (I have left out "fat" and "skinny"; let's assume that the person puts good amount of effort in personal hygiene and workout).
  • The problem is in the minds of the person: The person actually looks okay (maybe even above average), and also does not have a bad personality. The person has not tried talking to girls or has had some bad experiences due to bad luck.

I don't know if there is have any studies related to the questions that I have asked. Also, I am very sceptical of research conducted in Social Sciences as most of the research papers/ journal publications are not well cited. But still, some source is better than no source.

Let's not sweat over citations. Let's just hear each other's personal opinions and engage in a rational discussion. Of course, if you have any source, regardless of credibility (unless it's something like a bar plot you have put up on your personal website), you are welcome to share them.