Abstract:
The psychology of men and masculinity as a discipline promotes critical study of how gender shapes and constricts men's lives. This paper examines the creation and maintenance of perceptions of threat to masculinity in men. It includes a review of the past and current gender and masculinity literature in an attempt to understand the creation of a sensitivity to threat as well as how threat is elicited and maintained. Common male responses to threat are also examined. Finally, I discuss clinical implications and future directions for research on masculinity and threat to masculinity.