“Gambling With My Cards Face Up”: Vulnerability as a Risky Act Among Men

Abstract

This study examines men’s lived experiences of suppressing vulnerability in a conflict. These moments of suppression happened during conflicts with friends, romantic partners, or family members. A phronetic-iterative approach guided an in-depth analysis of 16 qualitative interviews to illuminate the social conditions and expectations that prevented men from verbally expressing vulnerability. Men made sense of their own and others’ suppression patterns by naming cultural, relational, and individual factors. We argue that the toxic culture of masculinity is constructed collectively, such that men’s communication creates and reinforces expectations of what it means to be “strong” men. Reshaping the current culture into a safe space for men to express emotions will require intentional efforts from both men and their support systems.

Incarcerated Young Men, Masculinity, and Trauma

“…Openness and vulnerability are discouraged in prison by fellow prisoners and serve as barriers to addressing past traumas ( Morse and Wright 2019 ). Research on masculinities suggests that men often talk positively about vulnerability, but also about not being able to be vulnerable for fear of being judged ( Deflin and Leach 2022 ). Receiving support in the form of correctional programming or therapeutic interventions may be off-limits to cis men serving time because it is perceived as not overtly masculine ( Morse and Wright 2019 ).…”

“…Receiving support in the form of correctional programming or therapeutic interventions may be off-limits to cis men serving time because it is perceived as not overtly masculine ( Morse and Wright 2019 ). Part of the work of deconstructing hegemonic masculinity may be working with incarcerated young men to not fight against the feelings that are associated with their trauma and developing self-acceptance of feelings and actions ( Deflin and Leach 2022 ).…”

Effects of Masculine Culture on the Mental Health of Northern Sotho Male Youth

“…In effect, being unable to meet masculine expectations and subscribing too strongly to masculinity by those with strong masculine identities may add to the general psychological suffering of males and lead to mental health di culties. 9,17,53 Multiple studies have highlighted that males typically link masculinity to physical strength, which is related to the ability to defend the vulnerable and offer leadership. 2,3,21,33 Failure to uphold the latter, coupled with concealment of their vulnerability, may have some serious unintended mental health and help-seeking downsides (i.e., reluctance to seek psychological help as only "weak" men seek help).…”

Emojis and Exclamation Points: Men’s Expressiveness and Subsequent Evaluation in Interpersonal Mobile Communication

“…To be sure, there is also a concurrent, rich body of literature suggesting that messaging behaviors that become culturally linked to women may ultimately be avoided by certain types of men for a variety of reasons (for an overview see Bowman, 2009) including the hegemonic reinforcement of orthogonal gender identities (Connell, 2005). In part, this is because of the demands of a toxic hegemonic masculinity that reinforces not only the oppression of women but also the victimization of men who don’t fit expected gender patterns (Durón Delfín & Leach, 2022). This idea of traditional masculine ideology is not only descriptive but perceived as proscriptive for a variety of male-identitifed individuals (Martin & Van Wijk, 2021; McCreary et al, 2005).…”

“…This idea of traditional masculine ideology is not only descriptive but perceived as proscriptive for a variety of male-identitifed individuals (Martin & Van Wijk, 2021; McCreary et al, 2005). Indeed, some men may experience anxiety about the possibility of being perceived as feminine, gay, weak, and/or a variety of other negatively-associated characteristics (by both individual men and the generalized other) depending upon characteristics like their own internalized homophobia, their own beliefs in traditional sex roles, and a variety of other contextual cues and attributional processes that influence their thinking (Durón Delfin & Leach, 2022). In fact, recent work on texting looks at the idea of heterosexuality and gender as intrinsically entwined, noting that young people might struggle in disentangling the concepts and therefore struggle with threats to their own identity through messaging practices (Hunehäll Berndtsson, 2021).…”