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Masculinity in Men’s Health: Barrier or Portal to Healthcare?

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Men's Health in Primary Care

Part of the book series: Current Clinical Practice ((CCP))

Abstract

This chapter will review the literature that links notions of masculinity with men’s health and health behaviors. An important focus of this chapter is describing the role that notions of masculinity and manhood play in shaping how men define health and how men fit health into other life priorities. The chapter covers four broad areas: (1) concepts and measures of masculinity, (2) the role of stress as an important determinant of men’s health and health behavior, (3) a discussion of how masculinity changes over time, and finally (4) how men conceptualize health. Despite the research linking masculinity and health, future research and practice should explore what masculinity and manhood mean to men explore ways to integrate how men prioritize and define health in clinical and educational efforts to improve men’s health.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute for Research on Men’s Health, Center for Medicine, Health and Society, Vanderbilt University, PMB #351665, 2301 Vanderbilt Place, Nashville, TN, 37235-1665, USA

    Derek M. Griffith PhD

  2. Department of Behavioral Sciences and Health Education, College for Public Health and Social Justice, Saint Louis University, Salus Center, 3545 Lafayette Avenue, St. Louis, MO, 63104, USA

    Keon L. Gilbert Dr.PH, MA, MPA

  3. Department of Criminal Justice and Sociology, Jackson State University, 18830, 360 Dollye M.E. Robinson Building, Jackson, MS, 39217, USA

    Marino A. Bruce PhD, MSRC, MDiv, CRC

  4. Center for Health of Minority Males (C-HMM), Myrlie Evers-Williams Institute for the Elimination of Health Disparities, University of Mississippi Medical Center, 2500 North State Street, Jackson, MS, 39216, USA

    Marino A. Bruce PhD, MSRC, MDiv, CRC

  5. Department of Health, Behavior and Society, Program for Research on Men’s Health, Hopkins Center for Health Disparities Solutions, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 624 N. Broadway, Suite 708, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA

    Roland J. Thorpe Jr. PhD

Authors
  1. Derek M. Griffith PhD
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  2. Keon L. Gilbert Dr.PH, MA, MPA
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  3. Marino A. Bruce PhD, MSRC, MDiv, CRC
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  4. Roland J. Thorpe Jr. PhD
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Derek M. Griffith PhD .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Depts. of Family Medicine and Urolo, University of Michigan Medical Scho, Ann Arbor, New York, USA

    Joel J. Heidelbaugh

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Griffith, D.M., Gilbert, K.L., Bruce, M.A., Thorpe, R.J. (2016). Masculinity in Men’s Health: Barrier or Portal to Healthcare?. In: Heidelbaugh, J. (eds) Men's Health in Primary Care. Current Clinical Practice. Humana Press, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-26091-4_2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-26091-4_2

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