Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Boys, Bullying, and Gender Roles: How Hegemonic Masculinity Shapes Bullying Behavior

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Gender Issues Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

During adolescence, schools and peers are salient agents of gender socialization. Specifically, bullying is a common experience for many adolescents. While existing research has examined how bullying differs for girls and boys, very little has examined the ways that bullying serves to reinforce masculinity. This study combines quantitative and qualitative data to examine how bullying reinforces a specific lens of masculinity. By focusing on the experiences of bullying among middle school boys across the United States, we find that the context of school, peers, and bullying contributes to the social construction of masculinity for adolescents. By conducting a content analysis of data provided by victims, we find that many of the experiences of bullying are grounded in, or interpreted through, hegemonic masculinity. Four key themes that emerged from the data include the importance of heterosexuality, physical dominance and intimidation, acceptance and normalization of violence, and how gender intersects with other social locations. Findings from this study offer insight into how adolescent bullying perpetuates notions of masculine dominance and gender inequalities.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. In earlier analyses, we compared the group of 275 boys who provided qualitative data with the 622 identified victims of bullying who did not provide a quote. These two groups did not vary on any demographic characteristic other than grade level, with those who provided a quote being slightly younger. Those who provided quotes did report significantly more frequent and subjectively more harmful bullying than victims who did not include qualitative data. A full comparison of these groups is available on request.

References

  1. Anderson, E. (1999). Code of the street: Decency, violence, and the moral life of the inner city. New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Company Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  2. Archer, J. (2004). Sex differences in aggression in real-world settings: A meta-analytic review. Review of General Psychology, 8(4), 291.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Arseneault, L. (2017). The long-term impact of bullying victimization on mental health. World Psychiatry, 16(1), 27–28.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Aseltine, R. H. (2009). A reconsideration of parental and peer influences on adolescents deviance. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 36(2), 103–121.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Baldry, A. C., Farrington, D. P., & Sorrentino, A. (2017). School bullying and cyberbullying among boys and girls: Roles and overlap. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 26(9), 937–951.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Barlett, C., & Coyne, S. M. (2014). A meta-analysis of sex differences in cyber-bullying behavior: The moderating role of age. Aggressive Behavior, 40(5), 474–488.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Barzilay, S., Klomek, A. B., Apter, A., Carli, V., Wasserman, C., Hadlaczky, G., et al. (2017). Bullying victimization and suicide ideation and behavior among adolescents in Europe: A 10-country study. Journal of Adolescent Health, 61(2), 179–186.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Beasley, C. (2008). Rethinking hegemonic masculinity in a globalizing world. Men and Masculinities, 11(1), 86–103.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Bem, S. L. (1993). The lenses of gender: Transforming the debate on sexual inequality. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  10. Berlan, E. D., Corliss, H. L., Field, A. E., Goodman, E., & Austin, S. B. (2010). Sexual orientation and bullying among adolescents in the growing up today study. Journal of Adolescent Health, 46(4), 366–371.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Bhana, D., & Mayeza, E. (2016). We don’t play with gays, they’re not real boys…they can’t fight: Hegemonic masculinity and (homophobic) violence in the primary years of schooling. International Journal of Educational Development, 51, 36–42.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  12. Bond, L., Carlin, J. B., Thomas, L., Rubin, K., & Patton, G. (2001). Does bullying cause emotional problems? A prospective study of young teenagers. BMJ, 323, 480.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Britton, D. M. (2003). At work in the iron cage: The prison as gendered organization. New York, NY: New York University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  14. Butler, J. (2007). Gender trouble. New York, NY: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  15. Card, N. A., Stucky, B. D., Sawalani, G. M., & Little, T. D. (2008). Direct and indirect aggression during childhood and adolescence: A meta-analytic review of gender differences, intercorrelations, and relations to maladjustment. Child Development, 79(5), 1185–1229.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. Carrigan, T., Connell, B., & Lee, J. (1985). Toward a new sociology of masculinity. Theory and Society, 14(5), 551–604.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Cohen, J. (1960). A coefficient of agreement for nominal scales. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 20(1), 37–46.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Collins, P. H. (1990). Black feminist thought: Knowledge, consciousness, and the politics of empowerment. New York, NY: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  19. Connell, R. W., & Messerschmidt, J. W. (2005). Hegemonic masculinity: Rethinking the concept. Gender and Society, 19, 829–859. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243205278639.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Connell, R. W. (1996). Teaching the boys: New research on masculinity, and gender strategies for schools. Teachers College Record, 98(2), 206–235.

    Google Scholar 

  21. Connell, R. W. (2005). Masculinities. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  22. Contreras, D., Elacqua, G., Martinez, M., & Miranda, Á. (2016). Bullying, identity and school performance: Evidence from Chile. International Journal of Educational Development, 51, 147–162.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Cooper, M. (2000). Being the ‘go-to-guy’: Fatherhood, masculinity, and the organization of work in Silicon Valley. Qualitative Sociology, 23(4), 379–404.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Crick, N. R., & Grotpeter, J. K. (1995). Relational aggression, gender, and social-psychological adjustment. Child Development, 66, 710–722. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.1995.tb00900.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  25. Davis, S., & Nixon, C. L. (2014). Youth voice project: Student insights into bullying and peer mistreatment. Champaign, IL: Research Press Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  26. Elliott, K. O. (2012). The right way to be gay: How school structures sexual inequality. In E. R. Meiners & T. Quinn (Eds.), Sexualities in education: A reader (pp. 158–166). New York, NY: Peter Lang Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  27. Espelage, D. L., Mebane, S. E., & Swearer, S. M. (2004). Gender differences in bullying: Moving beyond mean level differences. In D. L. Espelage & S. M. Swearer (Eds.), Bullying in American schools: A social-ecological perspective on prevention and intervention (pp. 15–35). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Publishers.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  28. Fields, L., & Prinz, R. J. (1997). Coping and adjustment during childhood and adolescence. Clinical Psychology Review, 17(8), 937–976.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Fried, S., & Fried, P. (1996). Bullies & victims: Helping your child survive the schoolyard battlefield. New York, NY: M. Evans and Company Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  30. Goldstein, A. P. (1996). Violence in America: Lessons on understanding the aggression in our lives. Palo Alto, CA: Davies-Black.

    Google Scholar 

  31. Graneheim, U. H., & Lundman, B. (2004). Qualitative content analysis in nursing research: Concepts, procedures and measures to achieve trustworthiness. Nurse Education Today, 24(2), 105–112.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Hamburger, M. E., Basile, K. C., & Vivolo, A. M. (2011). Measuring bullying victimization, perpetration, and bystander experiences: A compendium of assessment experiences. Atlanta, GA: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.

    Google Scholar 

  33. Hooks, B. (1981). Ain’t I a woman: Black women and feminism. Boston, MA: South End Press.

    Google Scholar 

  34. Hoover, J. H., Oliver, R., & Hazler, R. J. (1992). Bullying: Perceptions of adolescent victims in the midwestern USA. School Psychology International, 13, 5–16. https://doi.org/10.1177/0143034392131001.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Hruschka, D. J., Schwartz, D., St. John, D. C., Picone-Decaro, E., Jenkins, R. A., & Carey, J. W. (2004). Reliability in coding open-ended data: Lessons learned from HIV behavioral research. Field Methods, 16(3), 307–331.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Johnson, A. G. (2005). The gender knot: Unraveling our patriarchal legacy. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  37. Kanter, R. M. (1993). Men and women of the corporation (2nd ed.). New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  38. Katz, J., & Earp, J. (1999). Tough guise. Northampton, MA: DVD Media Education Foundation.

    Google Scholar 

  39. Kerr, D. C., Gini, G., & Capaldi, D. M. (2017). Young men’s suicidal behavior, depression, crime, and substance use risks linked to childhood teasing. Child Abuse and Neglect, 67, 32–43.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  40. Kimmel, M. S., & Mahler, M. (2003). Adolescent masculinity, homophobia, and violence: Random school shootings, 1982-2001. American Behavioral Scientist, 46, 1439–1458. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002764203046010010.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  41. Klomek, A. B., Sourander, A., & Elonheimo, H. (2015). Bullying by peers in childhood and effects on psychopathology, suicidality, and criminality in adulthood. The Lancet Psychiatry, 2(10), 930–941.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  42. Kochenderfer-Ladd, B., & Skinner, K. (2002). Children’s coping strategies: Moderators of the effects of peer victimization? Developmental Psychology, 38, 267–278. https://doi.org/10.1037//0012-1649.38.2.267.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  43. Kosciw, J. G., Greytak, E. A., Bartkiewicz, M. J., Boesen, M. J., & Palmer, N. A. (2011). The 2011 national school climate survey: The experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth in our nation’s schools. New York, NY: GLSEN. http://glsen.org/sites/default/files/2011%20National%20School%20Climate%20Survey%20Full%20Report.pdf.

  44. Krippendorff, K. (2013). Content analysis: An introduction to its methodology (3rd ed.). Los Angeles, CA: Sage Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  45. Lereya, S. T., Copeland, W. E., Costello, E. J., & Wolke, D. (2015). Adult mental health consequences of peer bullying and maltreatment in childhood: Two cohorts in two countries. The Lancet Psychiatry, 2(6), 524–531.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  46. Lorber, J. (1994). Paradoxes of gender. New Haven: Yale University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  47. Martin, P. Y. (2004). Gender as social institution. Social Forces, 82, 1249–1273. https://doi.org/10.1353/sof.2004.0081.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  48. Messerschmidt, J. W. (2014). Crime as structured action: Doing masculinities, race, class, sexuality, and crime (2nd ed.). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield.

    Google Scholar 

  49. Messerschmidt, J. W. (1993). Masculinities and Crime: Critique and Reconceptualization of Theory. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield.

    Google Scholar 

  50. Meyer, E. J. (2009). Gender, bullying, and harassment: Strategies to end sexism and homophobia in schools. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

    Google Scholar 

  51. Morgan, D. L. (1993). Qualitative content analysis: A guide to paths not taken. Qualitative Health Research, 3(1), 112–121.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  52. Morris, E. W. (2012). Learning the hard way: Masculinity, place, and the gender gap in education. New Brunswick, NY: Rutgers University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  53. Nielsen, H. B., & Davies, B. (2017). Formation of gendered identities in the classroom. In S. Wortham, D. Kim, & S. May (Eds.), Discourse and education (pp. 135–145). Berlin: Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  54. Ocampo, A. C. (2016). “Manning up to being gay”: Minority masculinities in the community and at the club. In C. J. Pascoe & T. Bridges (Eds.), Exploring masculinities: Identity, inequality, continuity and change (pp. 301–310). New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  55. Olweus, D. (1986). Aggression and hormones: Behavioral relationship with testosterone and adrenaline (pp. 51–72). Development of antisocial and prosocial behavior: Research, theories, and issues.

    Google Scholar 

  56. Olweus, D. (1993). Bullying at school: What we know and what we can do. Oxford: Blackwell.

    Google Scholar 

  57. Osterman, K., Bjorkqvist, K., Lagerspetz, K. M. J., Kaaukiainen, A., Landau, S. F., Fraczek, A., et al. (1998). Cross-cultural evidence of female indirect aggression. Aggressive Behavior, 24, 1–8. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1098-2337.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  58. Paechter, C. (2007). Being boys; being girls: Learning masculinities and femininities: Learning masculinities and femininities. London: McGraw-Hill Education.

    Google Scholar 

  59. Pascoe, C. J., & Bridges, T. (2016). Exploring masculinities: Identity, inequality, continuity and change. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  60. Pascoe, C. J. (2005). “Dude, you’re a fag”: Adolescent masculinity and the fag discourse. Sexualities, 8, 329–346. https://doi.org/10.1177/1363460705053337.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  61. Pascoe, C. J. (2007). Dude you’re a fag: Masculinity and sexuality in high school. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.

    Google Scholar 

  62. Risman, B. J. (2004). Gender as a social structure: Theory wrestling with activism. Sociologists for Women in Society Feminist Literature, 18(4), 429–450.

    Google Scholar 

  63. Robers, S., Kemp, J., Truman, J., & Snyder, T. D. (2013). Indicators of school crime and safety: 2012. National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education, and Bureau of Justice Statistics, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice. Available from http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2013/2013036.pdf.

  64. Rose, C. A. (2004). Bullying among students with disabilities: Impact and implications. In D. L. Espelage & S. M. Swearer (Eds.), Bullying in North American Schools (2nd ed., pp. 34–44). New York, NY: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  65. Ryan, G. W., & Bernard, H. R. (2003). Techniques to identify themes. Field. Methods, 15, 85–109. https://doi.org/10.1177/1525822X02239569.

    Google Scholar 

  66. Schrock, D., & Schwalbe, M. (2009). Men, masculinity, and manhood acts. Annual Review of Sociology, 35, 277–295.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  67. Simmons, R. (2002). Odd girl out: The hidden culture of aggression in girls. New York: Harcourt Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  68. Smokowski, P. R., Evans, C. B., & Cotter, K. L. (2014). The differential impacts of episodic, chronic, and cumulative physical bullying and cyberbullying: The effects of victimization on the school experiences, social support, and mental health of rural adolescents. Violence and Victims, 29(6), 1029–1046.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  69. Sourander, A., Jensen, P., Ronning, J. A., Niemela, S., Helenius, H., Sillanmaki, L., et al. (2006). What is the early adulthood outcome of boys who bully or are bullied in childhood? The Finnish “from a boy to a man” study. Pediatrics, 120(2), 397–404. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2006-2704.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  70. Sullivan, K. (2011). The anti-bullying handbook (2nd ed.). Los Angeles, CA: Sage.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  71. Thorne, B. (1997). Gender play: Girls and boys in school. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  72. Van Geel, M., Vedder, P., & Tanilon, J. (2014). Relationship between peer victimization, cyberbullying, and suicide in children and adolescents: A meta-analysis. JAMA Pediatrics, 168(5), 435–442.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  73. Wagner, C. M. (2017). Sticks and stones: An examination of the effects of bullying on health and relationships. In N. R. Silton (Ed.), Family dynamics and romantic relationships in a Changing Society (pp. 285–309). Hershey: IGI Global.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  74. Wang, J., Iannotti, R. J., & Nansel, T. R. (2009). School bullying among adolescents in the United States: Physical, verbal, relational, and cyber. Journal of Adolescent Health, 45(4), 368–375.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  75. West, C., & Zimmerman, D. H. (1987). Doing gender. Gender and Society, 1, 125–151. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243287001002002.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  76. Wilkins, A. C. (2008). Wannabes, goths, and Christians: The boundaries of sex, style, and status. Chicago, IL: The University of Chicago Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  77. Wilkins, A. C. (2016). Masculinity dilemmas: Sexuality and intimacy talk among Christians and Goths. In C. J. Pascoe & T. Bridges (Eds.), Exploring masculinities: Identity, inequality, continuity and change (pp. 301–310). New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  78. Wilton, M., Mahady, M., & Craig, W. M. (2000). Emotional regulation and display in classroom victims of bullying: Characteristic expressions of affect, coping styles and relevant contextual factors. Social Development, 9(2), 226–245.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  79. Wolke, D., & Lereya, S. T. (2015). Long-term effects of bullying. Archives of Disease in Childhood, 100(9), 879–885.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  80. Wolkomir, M. (2006). Be not deceived: The sacred and sexual struggles of gay and ex-gay Christian men. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Ingenuity Project, Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, 1400 W. Cold Spring Lane, Baltimore, MD, 21209, USA

    Nicole L. Rosen

  2. Department of Sociology, University of Akron, Olin Hall 264, Akron, OH, 44325, USA

    Stacey Nofziger

Authors
  1. Nicole L. Rosen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Stacey Nofziger
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nicole L. Rosen.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. As a secondary data source, data for this manuscript received permission from Penn State University’s Institute Review Board. In addition the IRB at The University of Akron was consulted and the project registered with “exempt from review” status.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Rosen, N.L., Nofziger, S. Boys, Bullying, and Gender Roles: How Hegemonic Masculinity Shapes Bullying Behavior. Gend. Issues 36, 295–318 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12147-018-9226-0

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12147-018-9226-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation