"The concept has proved helpful in many ways - highlighting how gender-based expectations can contribute to depression in men, for example, and encouraging men to see value in being open about their emotions. But it can also be problematic, researchers say. Casual use of the term might falsely imply, for example, that all societies think of manliness in the same way, that all masculine traits are negative, or that all men are toxic."
"Researchers have delved into similar concepts, including hegemonic or patriarchal masculinity, which examines how a dominant, culturally idealized view of manhood upholds the patriarchy. But the term toxic masculinity hasn't had as much academic attention. "Nobody measures it," says psychology researcher Steven Sanders at Oregon State University in Corvallis. Some psychologists are now trying to pick apart and quantify its aspects."
The term toxic masculinity was coined in the 1980s to describe how stereotypically masculine traits like dominance and aggression can cause damaging social impacts. The phrase is applied to behaviours ranging from sexual violence to reluctance to share household chores. The concept has helped identify links between gender expectations and male depression and has encouraged emotional openness among men. Casual use of the phrase can mislead by implying uniform cultural views of manliness or that all masculine traits or men are inherently negative. Some psychologists are developing measurement tools, including a 28-question toxic masculinity scale for US white male undergraduates and efforts to expand measurement to broader, more diverse male samples.
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