Men, masculinity and food: interviews with Finnish carpenters and engineers

Roos, Gun; Prättälä, Ritva; Koski, Katriina

doi:10.1006/appe.2001.0409

Cited by 128 publications

(118 citation statements)

References 14 publications

(17 reference statements)

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“…They expressed that as men they are expected to eat a lot and to eat what is served. This is in accordance with the literature which states that men are not supposed to be picky (Andersson, 1980;Holm and Møhl, 2000;Roos et al, 2001).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

“…In line with this finding the men used metaphors relating to machines or cars when they illustrated matters about health or their bodies, and effectiveness was a key word when discussing obesity. That work and performance are important to men's identity and masculinity in all social classes is also supported by the literature (Carlsen, 1990;Connell, 1995;Moynihan, 1998;Roos et al, 2001) and men comparing their bodies with machines or cars is also seen in other studies, where it has been shown that men relate to the performance, and to input and output of their body instead of its inner feelings and senses (Cameron and Bernardes, 1998;Moynihan, 1998).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 67%

“…In contrast, vegetables are associated with femininity and lightness (Andersson, 1980;Holm and Møhl, 2000;Roos et al, 2001). Furthermore, alcohol appears to be an important symbol of masculinity.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Furthermore, alcohol appears to be an important symbol of masculinity. In many cultures, to drink and to become drunk reflects an attempt to behave in accordance with male gender expectations (Holm and Møhl, 2000;Roos et al, 2001).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Overweight men's motivations and perceived barriers towards weight loss

et al. 2006

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Objective: To explore motivation and perceived barriers towards weight loss among Danish men. Design: The study was of an explorative nature, using qualitative focus group interviews as a method. Setting: Copenhagen, Denmark. Subjects: Twenty-two overweight men, at the age of 25-44 years and motivated for weight loss, were recruited and distributed into four focus groups. The men were primarily unskilled workers. Overall 13 men participated and each group contained three or four participants. Intervention: The interview guide was partly structured, partly unstructured and the themes of the interviews were motives and perceived barriers towards weight loss. Results: Main barriers for losing weight appeared to be lack of motivation and the perception of the slimming diet. The men had a desire to have a lean appearance and avoid illness, but in all the interviews it appeared that the strongest motive for losing weight was a strong desire to become more effective and a greater asset for one's workplace. Overweight subjects were considered less effective and attractive for the labour market. Conclusion: This study indicates that if men from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are to be motivated to weight loss the focus should not be on leanness and good health but rather on increased effectiveness and performance, and the arena should include the working place. Sponsorship: The Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University supplied the necessary equipment and conference rooms. (Kjøller and Rasmussen, 2002). Overweight and obese men are more likely than women to carry excess body fat around their waist and upper abdomen, which is associated with an increased risk of many health problems and men may benefit more from weight loss than women, because of the change in fat distribution following weight loss (Wirth and Steinmetz, 1998).Nevertheless, multiple studies have shown that men to a lesser extent than women try to lose weight, and significant fewer men than women participate in organized weight reduction programmes (French and Jeffery, 1994;Bendixen et al., 2002). Several reasons for this could be hypothesized: men are perhaps not motivated for weight loss, or they may perceive too many barriers towards weight reduction. A third reason could be that current weight reduction programmes and public health campaigns do not appeal to men. These issues are important to investigate in order to help design a more targeted endeavour to prevent obesity among men.Studies clarifying the motivation of men toward a lean body and weight loss are very sparse. Egger and Mowbray (1993) conducted focus group interviews among working class Australian men. They found that the main reason for wanting to lose weight was to feel better, whereas health was never mentioned spontaneously as a motive for wanting to lose weight. Contrary, Hankey et al. (2002) found that the main reason for seeking weight loss among a group of British overweight and obese male workers was that this would be beneficial to health.Only the study of Egger and Mowbray (...

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 67%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Overweight men's motivations and perceived barriers towards weight loss

et al. 2006

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“…One of the potential barriers to this transition is the alleged link between meat consumption and particular framings of masculinity, which emphasize that 'real men' eat meat (e.g., Fiddes, 1991;Meier & Christen, 2012;Roos, Prättälä, & Koski, 2001;Rothgerber, 2013;Rozin, Hormes, Faith, & Wansink, 2012;Ruby & Heine, 2011;Sobal, 2005). This link is indicative of the close association between food consumption and gender frames (i.e.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Meat and masculinity among young Chinese, Turkish and Dutch adults in the Netherlands

et al. 2015

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The achievement of sustainability and health objectives in Western countries requires a transition to a less meat-based diet. This article investigates whether the alleged link between meat consumption and particular framings of masculinity, which emphasize that 'real men' eat meat, may stand in the way of achieving these objectives. From a theoretical perspective, it was assumed that the meat-masculinity link is not invariant but dependent on the cultural context, including ethnicity. In order to examine the link in different contexts, we analyzed whether meat-related gender differences varied across ethnic groups, using samples of young second generation Chinese Dutch, Turkish Dutch and native Dutch adults (aged 18-35) in the Netherlands. The Turkish group was the most traditional; it showed the largest gender differences and the strongest meat-masculinity link. In contrast, the native group showed the smallest gender differences and the weakest meat-masculinity link. The findings suggest that the combination of traditional framings of masculinity and the Western type of food environment where meat is abundant and cheap is bound to seriously hamper a transition to a less meat-based diet. In contrast, less traditional framings of masculinity seem to contribute to more healthy food preferences with respect to meat. It was concluded that cultural factors related to gender and ethnic diversity can play harmful and beneficial roles for achieving sustainability and health objectives.

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Perspectives in Male Psychology

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Men, masculinity and food: interviews with Finnish carpenters and engineers

Cited by 128 publications

References 14 publications

Overweight men's motivations and perceived barriers towards weight loss

Overweight men's motivations and perceived barriers towards weight loss

Meat and masculinity among young Chinese, Turkish and Dutch adults in the Netherlands

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