#DMTBeautySpot #beauty

Movember Study Indicates Mens Troubled Ongoing Relationship With Masculinity

We know by now how important it is for men to approach their mental health in honest and productive ways.

But new research, commissioned by Movember, suggests that too many men are still wrestling in relative silence with issues such as masculinity, anxiety and depression. 

RELATED: American Men Under Pressure to "Man Up," Reveals Study

In perhaps the most alarming revelation, a third of men still feel pressure to be masculine or manly, while approximately half see masculinity as advantageous in landing a partner, dealing with day-to-day life and getting or keeping a job.

And while men definitely do see the benefits of talking about their issues, far fewer end up actually opening up about what’s bothering them.

WE NEED TO TALK

Movember’s ‘Perceptions of Masculinity & the Challenges of Opening Up’ report was built on research conducted by Ipsos Mori. The market research company conducted online surveys with men aged 18 to 75 in the United States, Canada, Australia and the U.K., with 1,000 subjects involved from each country.

Compiling the stats led to some eye-opening results. It seems that men as a whole still have some way to go before they’re on top of their mental health, particularly when it comes to dealing with issues of masculinity. 

Movember summarised the results as follows:

Three quarters of men across all countries describe themselves as masculine with nearly half describing masculinity in terms of being strong.

Approximately half of men identify masculinity as important in helping them get a partner, deal with day-to-day life and landing or keeping a job.

A third of men feel pressure to be masculine or manly and more than a third have avoided talking about their issues in order to avoid appearing unmanly.

Perhaps most worryingly, more than half of men think they’re expected to be emotionally strong and not show weakness.

Importantly, these figures affect not only how men feel but how they act, with one in ten saying they always or frequently change their behaviour to appear more masculine, and over a quarter doing so occasionally.

“To be manly/masculine is to be physically strong, mentally tough, resourceful,” wrote one participant from the United States.

A U.K. participant added that: “To be manly/masculine is to always try to act tough even when you feel like you just want to break down and cry.”

It’s not all bad news, though, with more than three quarters of men thinking that talking is an effective way to deal with problems and that discussing them can have positive impacts on mental health. And the perceived need for manliness — or at least a bracing version of masculinity — seems to wear away as men age.

“Young men have huge pressures and often feel the need to look strong in order to avoid unwanted attention/violence,” an older participant in the U.K. wrote. “It gets easier from this perspective as one ages.”

Movember members, too, relate to these struggles. When asked how the idea of being manly has changed over the past decade, Mo Bro Matt Skinner had this to say:

“I always believed being “Manly” was only about physical strength. Since asking for help was considered a form of weakness, for me, being “manly” was a term of division instead of cooperation. Although we still have a long way to go, I believe being “manly” is now about lifting up those around us, the importance of communication and learning that the power of men working together is better than any individual’s old “manly” strength.” 

WHY IT MATTERS

These are important topics because suicide remains a stubbornly common cause of death in countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom.

One of the best ways to deal with mental health issues is to simply talk about them. And that, clearly, is what men need to start doing more of.

When asked what advice he would give to men who are feeling pressured to appear more masculine, Mo Bro Jovis DePognon had this to say: “Before man, you're first a human. And there's no confusion in that. So when you start to feel that pressure, just focus on the things that would make you a good human being and then build on that. On top of that list should be to treat others the way you want to be treated. (What could be more manly than that?) Be able to have empathy. Own up to and/or admit to your mistakes and learn from them.”

Roll on Movember.

You Might Also Dig:

7 Behaviors That No Longer Define ‘Being a Man’ 5 Tips to Follow If You Think You Have a Mental Health Issue The Rock Talks Mental Health And Toxic Masculinity

DMTBeautySpot

via https://www.DMTBeautySpot.com

Matt Shea, Khareem Sudlow