Masculine Messages

A male's gender identity - his masculinity - has been and continues to be volatile. It has to be earned and proved on a day-to-day basis. A man can't just be masculine, he must constantly "prove" it. Masculine attainment refers to this persistent, lifelong quest for gender identity among American males. Being a man means achieving, accomplishing, having a good job, and providing adequately for oneself and one's family.

Gender-role strains are the difference between individuals' views of their personal characteristics and the norms taken from gender-role standards. Gender-role strain is seen as an intra-psychic process that can lead to psychological maladjustment, especially low self-esteem. Men are being forced to face issues about themselves that heretofore were accepted without question: place and role in society, patterns of relating to women and to other men, ways of expressing themselves; in a word, their very male identity.

The socially prescribed male behaviors require men to work against the fulfillment of certain needs, to be competitive, aggressive, and to evaluate their life successes in terms of external satisfaction. Every man is caught in this no-win bind: if he lives out society's prescribed role requirements his basic human needs are unfulfilled. On the other hand, if these human needs are satisfied there is a chance that he may be judged, or may judge himself, not to be a real man. Being emotionally inexpressive is a vital part of the very nature of "manliness. Many men are socialized to ignore feelings and become out of touch with their bodies, not to recognize internal stress, strain, and symptoms of sickness. If men are aware of these inner distress signals, they refuse to accept these signs of poor health, thus opening themselves up for cancer, strokes, breakdowns, heart attacks, and even suicide.

The male sex-role requires that men be independent, strong, self-reliant, competitive, achievement-oriented, powerful, adventurous, and emotionally restrained. These characteristics both take a toll on men's physical and mental health, and make it difficult for men to seek and utilize psychological services. The traditional male role is self-denying and stoic-heroic combination of characteristics.

"I pray this article empowers you to M.A.N. up!"

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