I was listening to one of my favorite podcasts, The Psych Files which I had forgotten about for a couple of months and came across a really interesting podcast called “Manhood: Are You A “Real Man”?“. The podcasts are aimed at people who are interested in psychology and human behaviour and nature in general. It is hosted by Michael A. Britt who holds a PhD in Psychology and used to be a college professor, but his podcasts are from bein lectures, they are informal and easy to follow.
Back to the specific podcast I mentioned, which was quite interesting. Britt discusses how men in most cultures need to prove their manhood, and how many cultures have rites of passage men have to go through to go from being boys to men whereas women in most cultures have nothing similar. The podcast was inspired by a specific study about the subject; how also men were more sensitive and defensive about their gender identity than women were. What I also found interesting was that men were more likely to react to to negative situations by aggression whereas women used relational aggression. In other words men fight while women exclude, gossip or spread rumors.
Listen to the podcast and let me know what you think. Do you believe men have to prove their manhood? Why do you think women don’t have to prove their womanhood? That’s what I find really weird, shouldn’t both genders have the need to prove their gender identity?
