So, what does it mean to be a man – to be masculine? Is it holding a steady job, serving as the provider for your family? Is it marrying a wife, having a monogamous, steady relationship and acting as a role model and positive example for your children? Could it be smoking cigars and drinking beer, you know, like classic ‘Marlborough Man’? What about having big muscles and a tough attitude? Is it more masculine to be the stereotypical American action hero, yielding guns and kicking ass? What about the sly, sharp dressing womanizer type, like James Bond? You tell us.
With so many definitions of ‘what it means to be a man’, it is not too hard to see why many people fail to identify with any one, single definition of masculinity. The study referenced fails to provide a definition of what masculinity actually means, and in doing so, opening the door for individual interpretation – perhaps unique to each of us. But the definition of what it means aside, the study does speak to the sharp generational gap which exists between older and younger generations, as well as different cultures.
The new study, released by YouGov, has revealed just 2% of males aged 18-24 self identify as “feeling masculine.” This number is a steep drop-off compared to the 56% of males over the age of 65 who identify as “masculine” in the same country. Taking a deeper look at the statistics, this trend continues to hold strong with each generation feeling less masculine than the one before them. In other words, as the age demographic decreases, so too does the percentage of people who self identify as masculine.
The study also found a sharp contrast between men in different countries. For example, overall, 42% of American men identify as “completely masculine,” compared to just 28% in Britain.
Though the study fails to provide a definition of what it means to be masculine, one question specifically asked the participants how they felt about sensitivity. Overall, 44% of all men and only 36% of young men (aged 18-24) say they are likely to talk about emotions and issues troubling them with friends or family.
Other interesting notes from the study found that men who self identify as “feeling masculine” are 64% more likely to find themselves involved in physical fights, all of which have already been involved in fights in the past. Consequentially, men who do not identify as feeling masculine tend to have never been involved in physical confrontations. Overall, 75% of pollsters, male and female alike, associate a negative connotation to the word “masculine.”
The results are curious in many ways. Perhaps older generations are more experienced, mature and with age comes a certain sense of wisdom as they say. If you are over the age of 65, you most likely have come to terms with who and what you are. Perhaps the younger generation is more insecure, less experienced and has no real idea what they want to become. I think this is true at least on some level and I cannot think of many other reasons why the data would come out as it did.
The study does hint about how accepting/sensitive the culture has become to the LBGT community in recent times and how this has not been the case in the past. Masculinity is often times associated with austerity, aggression, strength and it makes sense why some people who consider themselves more accepting would choose not to identify as masculine. But just 2%, that is a surprising number.
Source: YouGov
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This is just ridiculous…