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 The analysis found links between sexist behavior and mental health
issues such as depression and substance abuse, said the study which
appeared in the Journal of Counseling Psychology, published by the
American Psychological Association.
"Some of these sexist masculine norms, like being a playboy and
power over women, aren't just a social injustice but they are also
potentially bad for your mental health," said Joel Wong, an
associate professor of counseling psychology at Indiana University
Bloomington and lead author of the study.
Its release comes on the heels of the election to the U.S.
presidency of Donald Trump, whose comments about women that emerged
during the election campaign were condemned by many as sexist and
misogynist.
The research synthesized results of more than 70 U.S.-based studies
involving more than 19,000 men over 11 years.
This involved looking at 11 norms generally considered by experts to
reflect society's expectations of traditional masculinity including
a desire to win, risk-taking and pursuit of status, Wong said.
The traits, or norms, most closely linked to mental health problems
were playboy behavior, or sexual promiscuity, power over women and
self-reliance, he said.
"Men who have trouble asking for directions when they're lost,
that's a classic example of self-reliance," Wong said.
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Also, men who exhibited those attitudes were also less likely to
seek mental health treatment, the study said.
The researchers said there was one dimension for which they were
unable to find any significant effects.
"Primacy of work was not significantly associated with any of the
mental health-related outcomes," said Wong in a statement.
"Perhaps this is a reflection of the complexity of work and its
implications for well-being. An excessive focus on work can be
harmful to one's health and interpersonal relationships, but work is
also a source of meaning for many individuals."
(Reporting by Ellen Wulfhorst, Editing by Belinda Goldsmith; Please
credit the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the charitable arm of Thomson
Reuters, that covers humanitarian news, women's rights, trafficking,
property rights and climate change. Visit http://news.trust.org)
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