Masculinity, Male Roles, and the Future of Feminist Psychology

Abstract

The old saying, “A good man is hard to find” is particularly apt when describing research published in the Psychology of Women Quarterly (PWQ). It’s interesting to speculate on how the proverbial visitor from Mars might describe the human male after reading PWQ. Article after article chronicles the damage caused by male behavior to women, families, and society, particularly from rape, battering, sexual harassment, and sex and race discrimination. The male image that emerges is of a violent, self-centered, insensitive, exploitive creature who confuses sex and violence, and defines masculinity and self-worth in terms of domination. As PWQ research findings have amply documented, there is more than a kernel of truth to that image. The physical and mental health costs of male violence against women alone justify research on the destructive consequences of male behavior having high visibility and priority on any feminist research agenda (Goodman, KOSS, & Russo, 1993; KOSS, Goodman, Browne et al., 1994). But the question has now become, “how do we move beyond documenting destructive consequences to preventing destructive behaviors in the first place?” Doing so will require examining concepts of masculinity and male roles, recognizing the interlocking nature of social roles for men and women, and removing sociocultural supports for male entitlement and privilege. Distinguishing between masculine and feminine gender roles and other social roles assigned by sex (e.g., father role, mother role, aunt, uncle, brother, sister) may provide a useful conceptual basis for this enterprise (Russo & Green, 1993). Substantial work has focused on conflicts and contradictions of women’s multiple roles at home and at work. Until recently however, little has been done to explore effects of conflicts and contradictions between male roles in family and work contexts (Pleck, 1981; Levant & Pollack, 1995). The importance of including examination of the media’s effects on gen-