Toxic Masculinity

[Anonymous]

Boys need to be raised to be more sensitive.

[Anonymous]

Parents need to encourage boys to express their true feelings and not be afraid to be vulnerable.

[Anonymous]

The real root of this problem is male-only sports teams. These need to go away.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The real root of this problem is male-only sports teams. These need to go away.

What an asinine response!

[Anonymous]

Toxic behavior from ANY gender means the inability to control one’s emotions. Overly aggressive behavior like physical or verbal intimidation when the situation does not call for it, being a jerk because you can, entitled behavior regarding sex, attention, money, affection, manipulation of someone’s emotions, violence in the form of hitting, pushing, shoving, throwing things, damaging property etc., crying or threatening to harm oneself to get one’s way.

As you can see I don’t believe in toxic male behavior, I believe in toxic behaviors. Being strong, assertive, aggressive in certain situations like sports/business, not being a pushover, and showing mental toughness are great traits for all genders.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would define it as men who are insecure about their own masculinity so they overcompensate by acting in what they feel is a stereotypical masculine way bullying men they feel are inferior and demeaning and not treating women as equals. This has nothing to do with how men fall on a spectrum of typical "manly" jobs, behavior or style preferences.

Or even dumb stuff like declining medical treatment because it looks weak. "Fight through the pain" is a top reason men give to avoid seeing a doctor. It's literally harmful to their health (i.e., "toxic"). [/quote

What a weird take. My husband hasn't been to the doctor in the 30 years I have known him (except one trip to the urgent care for stitches) and he is very very healthy. What do random, meaningless trips to the doctor for no reason have to do with having, or not having, toxic masculinity?

[Anonymous]

It is possible to raise boys who avoid, and even interrupt, toxic masculinity.

Masculinity itself is a social construct.

The possibility of negative effects of harmful masculinity occurs when negative masculine ideals are upheld. Primary gender role socialization aims to uphold patriarchal codes by requiring men to achieve dominant and aggressive behaviors. The concept of gender roles is not cast as a biological phenomenon, but is rather a psychological construct and a social construct, built on a social set of ideas that are malleable to change.

[Anonymous]

I think the gender binary itself is effed. The solution lies not just in how we raise boys, but in how we raise everyone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Toxic behavior from ANY gender means the inability to control one’s emotions. Overly aggressive behavior like physical or verbal intimidation when the situation does not call for it, being a jerk because you can, entitled behavior regarding sex, attention, money, affection, manipulation of someone’s emotions, violence in the form of hitting, pushing, shoving, throwing things, damaging property etc., crying or threatening to harm oneself to get one’s way.

As you can see I don’t believe in toxic male behavior, I believe in toxic behaviors. Being strong, assertive, aggressive in certain situations like sports/business, not being a pushover, and showing mental toughness are great traits for all genders.

With all due respect, this thread is about toxic masculinity.

Do better.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Thanks everyone for chiming in. A thought that came to mind is, how do raise girls to interrupt toxic masculinity?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. Thanks everyone for chiming in. A thought that came to mind is, how do raise girls to interrupt toxic masculinity?

First step is of course awareness, and that comes through educating girls.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It is possible to raise boys who avoid, and even interrupt, toxic masculinity.

Masculinity itself is a social construct.

The possibility of negative effects of harmful masculinity occurs when negative masculine ideals are upheld. Primary gender role socialization aims to uphold patriarchal codes by requiring men to achieve dominant and aggressive behaviors. The concept of gender roles is not cast as a biological phenomenon, but is rather a psychological construct and a social construct, built on a social set of ideas that are malleable to change.

That’s some useful Ivory Tower thinking. Thanks for sharing.

[Anonymous]

[twitter]

Anonymous wrote:It is possible to raise boys who avoid, and even interrupt, toxic masculinity.

Masculinity itself is a social construct.

The possibility of negative effects of harmful masculinity occurs when negative masculine ideals are upheld. Primary gender role socialization aims to uphold patriarchal codes by requiring men to achieve dominant and aggressive behaviors. The concept of gender roles is not cast as a biological phenomenon, but is rather a psychological construct and a social construct, built on a social set of ideas that are malleable to change.

This is drivel. There’s overwhelming evidence on the biological differences between the sexes.

The idea that someone can have a gender that is different from their sex… now THAT is a social construct if there ever was one.

[Anonymous]

What is toxic femininity?

[Anonymous]

Before we allow men to become fathers, I feel it’s crucial they participate; really participate in a group like this one:

https://www.gq.com/story/inside-a-group-where-men-confront-their-feelings