The Male Self

Abstract

“Why, I am a man” … usually is the first statement made by an American man when he is asked the question “who are you?” Following this statement, American men generally will go on to describe themselves in terms of their behaviors and attitudes about themselves learned from others. In doing so, they reveal, in addition to their gender identity—Richardson (1981) feels that few people are confused on this point—information about whether they think their behaviors and attitudes are consistent with society’s norms for them (Richardson’s contention here is that many more people worry about this). In other words, self-concept responses are frequently given in males— further elaborations on the “self.” But, what is the male self? How does it come about? What is the “male self’s” relationship to “male self-concept,” “male self-esteem,” “male behavior,” and so on? Answers to these questions, as well as others, constitute the focus of this chapter.

Whatever decision we make, whatever action we take, is inevitably predicated on some implicit assumption of what we were like. Without the ability to view ourselves as objects, to assess our dispositions or other characteristics, and to consider these in relation to the particular situation, we are virtually immobilized (Rosenberg and Kaplan, 1982, p. xiii).