The missing and needed male nurse: Discursive hybridization in professional nursing texts

Abstract

The role of men in nursing has been of ongoing interest to gender and work scholars who examine the processes that maintain or challenge occupational gender segregation. Drawing on professional nursing texts, the current study moves beyond individual men to investigate organizational practices within nursing that discursively construct the male nurse. Using the rhetoric of ‘equality’ and ‘diversity’, texts frame men in nursing as a missing and needed antidote to projected worker shortages and a homogenous workforce. Taking a critical lens to these arguments, analysis of professional discourse reveals an appropriated disenfranchisement that masks men's gendered privilege. Professional leaders frame men in nursing as equivalent to women in traditionally male occupations with little attention to the ways in which US men, particularly white and heterosexual men, are advantaged currently and historically. The findings trace a process of discursive hybridization through which organizational leaders appropriate rhetoric from historically disenfranchised groups to benefit predominantly white, middle‐class men.

Male Nursing Practitioners and Nursing Educators: The Relationship between Childhood Experience, Social Stigma, and Social Bias

“…According to previous studies [ 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 72 ], this motivation from previous experiences [ 40 ] usually directed people’s career perspectives and motivations due to a sense of belonging and positive experiences from lived stories. The current study, therefore, reflected the findings of previous studies and explored the additional sharing and lived stories from this group of male nursing professionals in the United States [ 6 , 11 ].…”

“…The current findings indicate that although many faced social stigma and social bias due to their gender roles in the nursing profession [ 6 , 40 ], many overcame the discrimination, social stigma, and social bias due to their strong sense of belonging from their childhood experiences and personal goals. First, many of the participants indicated that their sense of belonging (i.e., being a male nursing professional) was always established and firmed due to their positive early life experiences in their hometown [ 65 ].…”

“…In fact, it is not uncommon to find different types of social stigma and social bias placed against male individuals joining the female-dominated profession in the field of nursing and social caring [ 5 ]. Conservatively, school counsellors, family members, friends, and even general members of the public may prevent their male acquaintances from joining the nursing profession [ 6 ]. However, for male nursing professionals who joined as nurses, they may notice that they are in the minority in their working environment.…”

“…For postgraduate degrees, such as Master of Science Nursing and Doctoral-Level nursing degrees, these are only made up of 9.9% and 6.8% males, respectively [ 2 ]. In order to increase the overall percentage and number of male individuals, it is important to understand the reasons why male individuals decide to enter the field [ 6 ]. Particularly, this research study aims to understand how childhood experience and social context influence the career decision of these male nursing professionals.…”

Caring behaviors of male nurses: A descriptive qualitative study of patients' perspectives

“…Such gender stereotyping of caring is persistent in nursing and male nurses are perceived to be less caring than female nurses 10,11 . Recently, Cottingham, 12 after a discourse analysis of 130 professional nursing texts about male nurses, reported the following core findings. First, men are missing from the discipline of nursing.…”