PSYC 332 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Hegemonic Masculinity, Cosmeceutical
25 Jun 2018
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LECTURE 7 – June 18 th
Final Project – linking journal entries to theories of behaviour, but do not need to
attach whole journal. Due in 7 days.
Issues in Men’s health
At the individual level, gender roles can explain men’s reluctance to seek help;
avoidance of emotional expression; unsafe sexual behaviours, and risk-taking including
drug use, crime and dangerous sports. At a social level, identification of the self with
paid work, and avoidance of family activities are problematic. Dominant social
discourses position these as freely chosen behaviours, implicitly blaming individual men
for risky or antisocial choices; there is little awareness of the role of social construction
in men’s choices
Men make less use of healthcare services than women. This has been interpreted as
the result of the ‘hegemonic’ masculine code in which ‘real’ men are understood to be
physically fit, uninterested in their health and self-reliance. However, less attention has
been paid to understanding how hegemonic masculinity intersects with the wider
western socio-cultural contexts of men’s help-seeking, particularly the valorization of
health as a form of social achievement.
oMen are reluctant to take time off work for physical health (nvm mental
health) and tend to hide symptoms or play it off “I’ll be fine”
oUBC program to help men with depression seek help without stigma
oMen are more likely to turn to alcohol than therapy or medical services
oNew cosmeceutical companies for men, you can get manicures
oAverage age of women being fired from broadcasting is 40, men however
do not get fired.
Men’s ‘interpretive repertoires’
1) Neanderthal man – who avoids the doctors to explain help seeking by men ‘in general’
2) Taking Action – experiences of help-seeking in terms of being responsible, problem-
solving and in control
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