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The American Psychological Association (APA) has now issued new guidelines.
For the first time, “traditional masculinity ideology” is being associated with homophobia, misogyny, bullying, and sexual harassment, while warning it limits male psychological development.
The new guidelines by the APA are titled: “Guidelines for the psychological practice with boys and men.”
“Traditional masculinity ideology has been shown to limit males’ psychological development, constrain their behavior, resulting in gender role strain and gender role conflict and negatively influence mental health and physical health,” the APA report warns.
According to the APA guidelines, “masculinity ideology” is “a particular constellation of standards that have held sway over large segments of the population, including anti-femininity, achievement, eschewal of the appearance of weakness, and adventure, risk, and violence.”
The report adds that the ideology of masculinity is linked to misogyny, homophobia, sexual harassment and bullying.
“Men who benefit from their social power are also confined by system-level policies and practices as well as individual-level psychological resources necessary to maintain male privilege,” the APA guidelines asserts.
“Thus, male privilege often comes with a cost in the form of adherence to sexist ideologies designed to maintain male power that also restrict men’s ability to function adaptively.”
The report adds that men are “less likely to be diagnosed with internalizing disorders such as depression, in part because internalizing disorders do not conform to traditional gender role stereotypes about men’s emotionality.”
Because of this, the report says that men tend to be diagnosed with “externalizing disorders,” such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Such diagnoses often rely on medication instead of psychological intervention.
The report encourages psychologists to “recognize that masculinities are constructed based on social, cultural, and contextual norms.”
Further, psychologists are encouraged to “understand the impact of power, privilege, and sexism on the development of boys and men and on their relationships with others”.
The APA suggests that psychologists, by recognizing national and ideology, can “reduce the high rates of problems boys and men face and act out in their lives such as aggression, violence, substance abuse, and suicide.”
In the new guidelines, the APA also linked masculine ideology to violence against others and themselves. The report noted that 90% of all US homicides are committed by males.
It also noted that four times the number of men commit suicide as compared to women.
