Alternative Friendships to Improve Men’s Health Status. The Impact of the New Alternative Masculinities’ Approach

Abstract

Background: Men who develop behaviors connected with the model of hegemonic masculinity present several health problems. Previous research has shown the types of problems that men commonly suffer in this regard such as chronic diseases, dietary disorders, and traffic accidents. To combat and overcome this situation, several campaigns, policies and recommendations have been undertaken, and consequently, their influence has been analyzed. However, there have been few investigations into the role of men’s friendship in the reduction of these physical health problems. The findings presented in this article are focused on this issue, illustrating the impact of male friendship on the shaping of healthy behaviors. Methods: Drawing upon a qualitative-based methodology articulated in a case study of the Men in Dialogue association, located in Spain, the study has followed the premises of the communicative approach, a total of 15 structured online open-ended questionnaires have been performed and analyzed. The median age of the participants is 37.5 years. Results: The findings show how men involved in Men in Dialogue are promoting a kind of masculine friendship that is improving men’s emotional well-being and, consequently, their physical health.

Create Solidarity Networks: Dialogs in Reddit to Overcome Depression and Suicidal Ideation among Males

“…The findings obtained are aligned with previous studies ( [9,10]) demonstrating that heternormativity and homophobia have negative consequences for mental health, and participants on Reddit developed this in their comments. Therefore, in this context, it is relevant to incorporate new models of masculinity to improve men's health status to overcome insecurities about masculinity [20]. Our results advance the knowledge from the previous literature [5], highlighting the potential relevance of presenting multiple ways of being a male among adolescents.…”

“…Masculine standards are culturally specific, but usually they are aligned with the traditional models of masculinity [17,18]. These are models that are important to overcome by generating other models, currently conceptualized in the scientific literature as New Alternative Masculinities (NAM) [19,20]. The scientific literature presents the differentiation between the Dominant Traditional Masculinity (DTM) and the Oppressive Traditional Masculinity (OTM).…”

Evidence of Gender Violence Negative Impact on Health as a Lever to Change Adolescents’ Attitudes and Preferences towards Dominant Traditional Masculinities

“…Finally, NAM are non-violent and egalitarian boys and men who show self-confidence, actively positioning themselves against gender violence. They are attractive to girls and women, challenging the dominant coercive discourse and therefore being an alternative to overcome gender violence and to promote healthy relationships and emotional and physical wellbeing [ 28 ].…”

Reducing Health Effects on Deceit in Heterosexual Sexual-Affective Relationships: The Impact of the Preventive Socialization Program (PSP)

“…Drawing on this evidence, the present study aimed at going beyond to conduct a descriptive analysis of the effects of deceit, analyzing how the preventive socialization program (PSP, hereinafter), focused on the study of the effects of a coercive discourse and the promotion of dominant traditional masculinities, is contributing to combat the abovementioned health effects [ 7 , 8 , 9 ]. PSP is a research line based on the knowledge accumulated through two decades of competitive investigation aimed at discovering reasons for the prevalence of gender-based violence in society.…”