“Is Life Worth Living?”: The Role of Masculinity in the Way Men Aged Over 80 Talk About Living, Dying, and Suicide

Abstract

Men aged 85 years and over have the highest rate of suicide of any age or gender group in Australia. However, little is known about their trajectory toward suicide. The objective of this study was to understand the role of masculine norms and other life factors in the suicidality of older men. Thirty-three men aged 80 years or more took part in a semistructured focus group or interview, and/or completed a survey. Participants were asked about the issues facing older men, well-being and aging, physical health challenges, social support, mental health and help-seeking, and suicide and suicide prevention. Five themes emerged: “finding out we’re not invincible,” “active and tough,” “strong silent types,” “decision makers,” and “right to die.” Participants spoke about masculine norms that had influenced their lives as providers and decision makers, and now influenced how they coped with aging and their journey toward death. For some participants, suicide was seen to be a rational alternative to dependence in their final years. Suicide prevention should adopt a gendered approach and be cognizant of the influence of gender roles and masculinity in older men’s lives. Further research and prevention efforts should be mindful of the impact of masculine norms of self-reliance and control on an older man’s decision to end his life. Suicide prevention efforts should work to reduce stigma around the challenges of aging, maximize opportunities for control, facilitate social connection, and improve residential aged care.

Sheds for life: health and wellbeing outcomes of a tailored community-based health promotion initiative for men’s sheds in Ireland

“…In addition, while there was a marked difference between C1 and C2 in SWEEMWBS at 12 months, results suggest that, despite COVID-19, Shedders retained an improvement in mental wellbeing as well as a sustained reduction in depression prevalence. It is widely accepted that men experience barriers with engaging in conversations about mental health, often exacerbated by social constructs of what it means to be ‘masculine’ [ 77 – 79 ]. This narrative has been challenged by research that highlights that when men are familiar with problem-solving strategies to maintain their mental wellbeing, they are open to using them [ 80 – 82 ].…”

The views of Aotearoa/New Zealand adults over 60 years regarding the End of Life Choice Act 2019

“…These differences extend to the experience of end-of-life (Hilário, 2015). Western masculine norms requiring the portrayal of strength, autonomy, and action may in part underlie their attitudes toward assisted dying (King et al, 2020). Attell (2020) concluded that support for euthanasia and suicide generally decreases as people age.…”

Boys Do Cry: Age and Gender Differences in Psycho-Physiological Distress during the COVID-19 Pandemic in Italy

“…(Hudson et al, 2016, p. 4). Moreover, it has been suggested that older male respondents might adhere more strictly to norms on hegemonic masculinity (Campos-Castillo et al, 2020;King et al, 2020) and hence be less likely to show negative affect, whereas younger male respondents might be less worried about displaying their feelings out of fear of being considered vulnerable (Vogel et al, 2011). Thus, differences between age groups could be imputed not only to processes that occur over the life course (i.e., age affects), but also to different ways in which people were socialized as children (i.e., cohort and generational effects).…”