The article explores the impact of societal norms on masculinity, particularly how unacknowledged pressures can influence the behavior and development of boys and young men. It highlights the difficulties students face in recognizing these norms and emphasizes that pressures to conform to masculinity often lead to aggressive thoughts and feelings. The author argues that while masculinity itself isn't toxic, the rigid expectations surrounding it can be harmful. This raises concerns about the implications for identity formation and emotional expression in the youth of today.
Each semester, I ask my psychology students to imagine how people would grow up, think and act in a world without societal rules and expectations.
As I've noted before in Scientific American, many boys and men report feeling pressured to be stereotypically masculine.
The pressure to be a certain kind of masculine leads to aggressive thoughts and feelings, especially among adolescent boys and young adult men.
It's not masculinity that is inherently bad or toxic. Rather, problems arise when rigid masculinity is pressured onto boys and men.
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