Making Men Crazy

For decades now, American culture has been at war against men. Whether they were male chauvinist pigs or suffering from toxic masculinity, man have been systematically derided as emotionally retarded, chronically hostile, mindlessly aggressive and worse.

And, of course, as I have occasionally remarked, the therapy world is ill-equipped to deal with men and their troubles. Nowadays most therapists are female. They see mental health in feminine terms and believe that men can improve their mental health by being hooked up to an empathy drip.

Male patients consider it all to be insulting and they react negatively to the injunction to get in touch with their feelings.

Woman therapist are likely to ask this: But, how does that make you feel? No man thinks in those terms. No man has any idea what you are talking about when you ask such a question. It feels like being mothered, diminished and demeaned. It does not provide any therapeutic benefit.

Long time readers of my blog and Substack have already been exposed to these ideas. Now, we have something like a scientific study, reported in PsyPost:

A recent study published in Sex Roles reveals that “strategic masculine disinvestment,” a process where men intentionally distance themselves from traditional masculine ideals, is linked to poorer psychosocial functioning, including higher levels of distress and anger.

Jessica Pfaffendorf and Terrence Hill examined how changes in masculinity, including the shift away from hegemonic masculinity, marked by traits like stoicism and assertiveness, intersect with broader social changes. As structural support for traditional masculinity erodes, men are increasingly adopting alternative identity strategies.

So, rejecting traditional male characteristics is going to damage a man’s mental health. Being less manly is going to make you more crazy. If a man becomes less stoical and more effusive, less assertive and more self-pitying he will become more angry and distressed. And he will find it more difficult to function socially.

Through the educational system and through the mental health profession, our culture has been working to make men less manly. Strangely, this makes them more neurotic:

Younger men and those with college educations were more likely to report strategic masculine disinvestment, reflecting its prevalence among demographics exposed to progressive discourses on gender and identity, particularly in educational settings.

Divesting from traditional male roles causes people to suffer worse mental health:

Pfaffendorf and Hill observed consistent associations between strategic masculine disinvestment and poorer mental health. Men who engaged in disinvestment reported lower levels of mastery, feeling less control over their lives. They also experienced higher levels of anger, anxiety, and depression, along with elevated nonspecific psychological distress.

Making men less manly makes them crazier. Go figure.