Shifting Masculinities in Anglo American Countries

Abstract

This article provides an overview of the changing nature ofmasculinities in several English speaking cultures. The evidence andtheory come from numerous investigations into masculinities amongboth gay and straight male youths in the United States, UnitedKingdom, Canada and Australia. Collectively, I show that culturalhomophobia is rapidly decreasing among young men in these cultures, and that this is particularly true of teamsport athletes. I suggest that thedominant way of theorizing masculinities over the previous quartercentury, hegemonic masculinity theory, is incapable of explaining thesechanges. Thus, I introduce a new theory, inclusive masculinity theory, and the new heuristic concept of homohysteria, to make sense of thechanging nature of young men’s masculinities.