Healthcare professionals discourses on men and masculinities in sexual healthcare: a focus group study

Abstract

Studies have reported that men’s uptake of sexual health services is low, that these services make them feel vulnerable, and that they experience sexual healthcare (SHC) as stressful, heteronormative, potentially sexualised and “tailored for women”. They also suggest that healthcare professionals (HCPs) working in SHC view masculinity as problematic, and situated in private relationships. This study aimed to explore how HCPs construct the gendered social location in SHC, specifically in terms of masculinity and a perception that masculinity is situated in relationships. Critical Discourse Analysis was used to analyse transcripts from seven focus group interviews with 35 HCPs working with men’s sexual health in Sweden. The study found that gendered social locations were discursively constructed in four ways: (I) by problematising and opposing masculinity in society; (II) through discursive strategies where a professional discourse on men and masculinity is lacking; (III) by constructing SHC as a feminine arena where masculinity is a visible norm violation; (IV) by constructing men as reluctant patients and formulating a mission to change masculinity. The discourses of HCPs constructed the gendered social location of masculinity in society as incompatible with SHC, and saw masculinity in SHC as a violation of feminine norms. Men seeking SHC were constructed as reluctant patients, and HCPs were seen as agents of change with a mission to transform masculinity. The discourses of HCPs risk othering men in SHC, which could prevent care on equal terms. A shared professional discourse on masculinity could create a common foundation for a more consistent, knowledge-based approach to masculinity and men’s sexual health in SHC.

How gender and low mental health literacy are related to unmet need for mental healthcare: a cross-sectional population-based study in Sweden

“…Men’s lower mental health literacy could also mirror the gendered nature of the healthcare system. For example, two qualitative studies from Sweden recently found that healthcare personnel working with men’s sexual health often held traditional and stereotypical notions of masculinity, potentially reflected in their caregiving [ 67 ], and that the sexual healthcare in itself was constructed as a feminine and designed for women, which could discourage men from seeking care [ 68 ]. Research is needed to investigate if such gender bias exists also within the framing and organisation of the mental healthcare in Sweden, and how it may affect men’s mental health literacy, e.g., by reinforcing scepticism to the mental healthcare and its treatments.…”

“The third wing of the plane”: Fathers' perceptions of their role in the treatment process for daughters with eating disorders

“…This approach facilitates interaction and discussion amongst participants. For example, group members are able to consider and respond to points raised by others that they may not have thought of in an individual interview (Persson et al., 2023).…”

Deafening Silence of Male Infertility

“…54,55 However, the literature has also highlighted differing conclusions about the contribution of psychological interventions, potential aspects of risk among online communities and websites, and the need for an integrated multidisciplinary approach. 45,47,[56][57][58] A recent systematic review and meta-analysis 38 has demonstrated that psychosocial interventions contribute only to small improvements in distress and modest results on conception, indicating that future research is needed to refine available interventions to unique sources of stress, men and partners' preferences, and the experiences of individuals and dyads underrepresented in research, 59 while addressing barriers affecting timely referral to care. 60,61 "The decline in semen quality over the past 50 years is so universal and rapid that it cannot have a genetic basis but must be environmentally induced"…”