Unpacking toxic masculinity
The term ‘toxic masculinity’ has flooded modern discussions about gender, and specifically male violence. Toxic masculinity highlights a set of unhealthy and destructive gender norms for men, such as expectations for men to be dominant, even aggressive, and devoid of vulnerability. It is important to note that the identifier ‘toxic’ implies that not all expressions of masculinity are unhealthy. Whether you accept the term or not, there is an undeniable and substantial gender discrepancy in acts of violence.
In the US, almost three-quarters of all homicides involve a male killing another male. 97% of all mass shootings in the US since 1996 have been committed by men. In Australia, men are the major perpetrators of domestic violence, and are 4 times as likely to commit sexual assault. The Australian Institute of Criminology reported that being a young male is an important risk factor for committing violence. Is there really something about masculinity that is poisoning our society?
While it can be simply said that gender differences exist, how neurobiological factors contribute to violence remains a perplexing issue. Testosterone is often thought to be a major contributor to violent behaviour. As men possess much higher concentrations of testosterone than women, men are assumed to be more aggressive. A meta-analysis of decades of research however found only a small correlation between testosterone and aggression. Several genes have also been identified as risk factors for violent behaviour, but researchers conclude that many of these genes are “common in the general population, and are not solely implicated in the causal string leading to violence”. Is there a better explanation?
Modern researchers emphasise the epigenetic effect in understanding human behaviour. The epigenetic effect is initiated from the moment we are born. It is driven by environmental factors such as parenting, experience of trauma, inter-generational poverty and so on. It is understood to lead to dramatic brain and behaviour changes. Much developmental research shows that gender differences in emotional expression are socialised. As with any social learning, behavioural patterns are driven by rewards for following socially-prescribed rules, and punishments for deviating from the norm. Is socialisation contributing to male violence?
While awareness of men’s poor emotional health is increasing, the insidious beliefs about men’s toughness lead us to expect our boys to “man up” and aggress. Men who behave antithetical to such expectations are mockingly labelled ‘effeminate’. Such characterisation is related to society’s beliefs about women’s tenderness, and the expectations to “act like a lady” and submit. Within these gender stereotypes, men are restricted to overt expressions of dominance, or internalised guilt for not sacrificing themselves to validate their masculinity.
Even seemingly innocuous beliefs about girls being more empathic than boys can lead us to expect less of boys, when it comes to behaving cooperatively. This volatile combination of expectations for boys and men to externalise their bravado, and to be restricted from showing or even acknowledging their vulnerabilities, in part, explains why men commit more violence. While no single factor can explain the proportion of male violence compared to females, all men can benefit from lessening their responsibilities to act confrontationally, and to recover their whole selves by exploring their emotional needs. Men deserve better — masculinity needs rebranding.
