
MANdatory – why men need (and are needed for) gender equality progress
Substantial research shows the pervasive restrictions that gender roles impose on men. First, traditional views on masculinity discourage men to care for their physical and mental health, and encourage dangerous and risky behavior, leading to worldwide gender discrepancies in health outcomes and longevity (Brannon, 1976; Courtenay, 2000; WHO Regional Office for Europe, 2018; Vandello et al., 2022). Second, men are still commonly expected to be ambitious, successful and devoted to their work, which creates unhealthy pressure and hinders men’s domestic engagement (Berdahl et al., 2018). Third, it is still often disapproved for men to show interest in traditionally feminine domains, such as childcare and HEED occupations (Healthcare, Early Education and Domestic domains – Croft et al., 2015), while such interest is known to benefit men’s wellbeing and women’s position in society (Meeussen et al., 2020)
While much gender-equality effort focuses on women, we argue that not only are men needed for gender-equality progress to be successful, but that gender restrictions also have significant underexamined effects on men. This new attention towards men will also increase the likelihood that gender-equality efforts will engage men, as it makes clearer what all have to gain. In such endeavors, it is important not to lose sight of the goal: to benefit all, not just those groups or individuals directly affected by specific measures.