3.4

• In the 1970’s, studies of different aspects of manhood were made.

  • focuses on a variety of topics
  • Men made up a large majority of corporate executives, top professionals, and holders of public office.
  • Gender popularity is constantly reinforced in the media, hence, men now acknowledge that their position is under challenge. 
•  The myth of Male Power: Why are men the disposable sex? 

  • “Men are now the gender victims as a result of feminism.” - Warren Farrell  
  • Modern legislation is seen to be overprotective of women’s interest, resulting in discrimination against men at a time when they are under increasing threat within rapidly changing society 
• MASCULINITY – is a social, cultural, and historical construct dependent on and related to the other factors such as class, ethnicity, sexuality, age, and disability.
• Themes of masculinity:

  1. Multiple Masculinity

  • There is no one pattern of masculinity 
  • Cultures and history 
  • The meaning of masculinity is different in working class

  1. Hierarchy and hegemony

  • Hegemonic masculinity – position of cultural authority & leadership 
  • Embodies heroes, role models and so on 
  • Expression of the privilege men collectively have over women 

  1. Collective Masculinity

  • Patterns of conduct of individuals as either “masculine” or “feminine” 
  • Collective and informal  
• Masculinities and Well-being 

  • Research confirms that men are unlikely to talk about their worries and more likely to engage in other destructive behaviors when stressed.
  • These findings echo the evidence in the literature that conforming to stoic and rigid notions of masculinity contributes to suicidal behavior and depression (Moller-Leimkuhler 2003; Emslie et al. 2006) 
• • Culturally dominant forms of masculinity, which often urge men to practice strict emotional control, serves as barrier to health and help-seeking behavior, or encourages some men to engage in practices detrimental to their own health and that of their family
• Family formation, fathering, caregiving, and domestic roles

  • Domestic roles are (associated with women)t can involve a loss of face for men. 
  • Great deal was heard about increases in women’s labor force participation in recent decades but less about men’s caregiving and domestic roles
  • Better-educated men are more likely to put more time into domestic roles and caregiving (Hernandez 1996; Garcia and Oliverio 2004; Baker and Verani 2008). 
  • Men’s schooling may have expanded their sense of norms and weakened stereotypes through their exposure to broader and more diverse ideas. 
• Masculinities, Alcohol, and Drug Abuse

  • When men become drunk, fights and homicides are rationalized (Pange, 1998), and women are encouraged to tolerate men’s drunkenness as a natural part of their being (Caetano, 1984). 
  • Drug use and drug dealing can serve as ways of constructing a powerfully masculine identity (Collision 1996)
• Protest Masculinity

  • Traditional masculinity
  • Protest masculinity refers to describe instances of extreme forms of sex-typed behavior on the parts of some males
  • Key to the concept of protest masculinity are high levels of physical aggression (e.g. destructiveness, abuse, and violence).
  • Protest masculinity is often a product of narcissism built from the feelings of powerlessness and insecurity. 
• Caring Masculinity

  • Caring masculinities can be seen as masculine identities that exclude domination and embrace the affective, relational, emotional, and interdependent qualities of care. 
  • A critical form of men’s engagement in gender equality because doing care work requires men to resist hegemonic masculinity and to adopt values and characteristics of care (Elliot, 2016).
  • Men who approximate this form of masculinity are viewed as a form of “new man” (Edley and Wetherell 1999; Smith 2016; Singleton and Maher 2004).