There is no doubt the Harvey Weinstein revelations have pulled discussions of sexual assault and harassment to the front of water cooler discussions. These stories emphasize the negative consequences of what some call toxic masculinity. Left without context that is presented this article, mindsets are cemented and generalizations get perpetuated.
Source: The Cut, October 23, 2017.
Referencing a pilot Rethink Masculinity course, Stephen Hicks shared perspectives. “We spoke of emotional labor, consent, violence, communication, empathy, and vulnerability,” he adds, noting that the last subject, in particular, was a struggle for him: “[I was] trained and conditioned to be tough growing up.”
INSIGHTS: Professor Eric Mankowski offered this from a course titled Psychology of Men and Masculinities he has taught for 25 years. The concept of “toxic masculinity” has four main components:
- suppression of anything stereotypically feminine
- suppression of emotions related to vulnerability, like fear, sadness or helplessness
- male domination over women and other men;
- and aggression