In this study, the author used ethnographic and focus group interviews to examine the lived experiences of men who teach in the primary grades. Several themes arose from the men's narratives. First, the men are under closer scrutiny than their women peers regarding contact with the children. Second, there is considerable ambiguity regarding the kind of “male role model” the men feel they are expected to portray. Third, there is a sexual division of labor that reinforces the image of men as having different teaching styles than women teachers. In response to the cumulative effects of these phenomena, the men must adopt compensatory behaviors causing them to unintentionally reproduce traditional forms of masculinity.

In-depth interviews with men who work with young children as well as other key personnel in early childhood education (ECE) were analyzed using Acker's (1990) theory of gendered organizations along with Connell's (1987) typology of masculinities. The conclusion reached is that ECE is indeed gendered in terms of the symbols in frequent use, the differential structural location of women and men, the internal mental work of individuals, and the interactions among individuals. In addition, instead of performing a complicit masculinity and enjoying some of the perquisites and privileges of hegemonic men, as other researchers have suggested, this project demonstrates that the men are attempting to live subordinate masculinities that could challenge traditional gender relations. Their attempts are, however, thwarted by the gender regime embedded in the occupational structure.

This paper presents the results of a series of in-depth interviews with men who work in early childhood education (ECE), their women peers, their supervisors, and faculty members of colleges of education. The findings cast considerable doubt on the prevailing idea that men are "high status tokens" in ECE. In addition, the narratives of all involved give clear indication that repairing the low participation of men in ECE will require changes in deeply entrenched institutional practices rather than in the perspectives or behaviors of individual men.

No abstract

The cortisol awakening response (CAR) holds promise as a clinically important marker of health status. However, CAR research is routinely challenged by its innate complexity, sensitivity to confounds, and methodological inconsistencies. In this unprecedented characterization of CAR in elite military men (N = 58), we established summary parameters, evaluated sampling stability across two consecutive days, and explored the effect of subject compliance. Average salivary cortisol concentrations increased nearly 60% within 30 minutes of waking, followed by a swift recovery to waking values at 60 minutes. Approximately one in six were classified as negative responders (i.e., <0% change from waking to 30-minute postawakening). Three summary parameters of magnitude, as well as three summary parameters of pattern, were computed. Consistent with our hypothesis, summary parameters of magnitude displayed superior stability compared with summary parameters of pattern in the total sample. As expected, compliance with target sampling times was relatively good; average deviations of self-reported morning sampling times in relation to actigraph-derived wake times across both days were within ±5 minutes, and nearly two-thirds of the sample was classified as CAR compliant across both days. Although compliance had equivocal effects on some measures of magnitude, it substantially improved the stability of summary parameters of pattern. The first of its kind, this study established the foundation for a program of CAR research in a profoundly resilient yet chronically stressed population. Building from this, our forthcoming research will evaluate demographic, biobehavioral, and clinical determinants of CAR in this unique population.