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Multicultural Resource Project

Men's Issues

Books/Chapters/Journal Articles:

• Brod, H. (1987). The Making of masculinities : the new men's studies. Boston, Allen & Unwin.

  A foundational book, The Making of Masculinites pulls from important fields of study to provide the reader with a comprehensive view of masculinity in the United States.

• Brod, H., M. Kaufman, et al. (1994). Theorizing masculinities. Thousand Oaks, Calif., Sage Publications.

  This book presents theories and models associated with male masculinity along with foundational research associated with the emerging field.

• Burkowitz, A. (1994). Men and rape: Theory, research and preventive programs in higher education. San Francisco, Jossey-Bass.

Discusses relevant theory and practice around rape prevention in higher education.


• Kimmel, M. S. (1987). Changing men : new directions in research on men and masculinity. Newbury Park, Calif., Sage Publications.

Changing Men assembles some of the most innovative and exciting research on men and masculinity. It contributes to the demarcation of the new field of men's studies and to the analysis of masculinity within traditional academic disciplines.

The contributors deal with broad topical and methodological issues such as reformulating the male role, men in domestic settings, male//female relationships, sexuality, race and gender, and future directions for men's studies.

• Kimmel, M. S. and M. A. Messner (2004). Men's lives. Boston, MA, Allyn and Bacon.

  This best-selling reader on men and masculinity, edited by two of the most prominent researchers on men, contains the most current articles on masculinity available. Organized around themes that define masculinity, this reader takes the position that men (as well as women) are "gendered" and that this gendering process is a central experience for men. The authors explore how working class men, men of color, gay men, older men, and younger men construct different versions of masculinity. One reviewer says, "This reader does a remarkable job of showing the interconnectedness of race, class, and gender ... It also makes clear that any discussion of `men's lives' of necessity involves an understanding of the social roles of both men and women, and of gender inequality." For anyone interested in gender studies, sociology, or men's studies

• Kindlon, D. J., M. Thompson, et al. (2000). Raising cain : Protecting the emotional life of boys. New York, Ballantine Books.

  In Raising Cain, Dan Kindlon, Ph.D., and Michael Thompson, Ph.D., two of the country's leading child psychologists, share what they have learned in more than thirty-five years of combined experience working with boys and their families. They reveal a nation of boys who are hurting--sad, afraid, angry, and silent. Statistics point to an alarming number of young boys at high risk for suicide, alcohol and drug abuse, violence and loneliness. Kindlon and Thompson set out to answer this basic, crucial question: What do boys need that they're not getting? They illuminate the forces that threaten our boys, teaching them to believe that "cool" equals macho strength and stoicism. Cutting through outdated theories of "mother blame," "boy biology," and "testosterone," Kindlon and Thompson shed light on the destructive emotional training our boys receive--the emotional miseducation of boys.

• Kivel, P. (1992). Men's work : how to stop the violence that tears our lives apart. Center City, Min., Hazelden.

  Using the unique program at the Oakland Men's Project in California as a basis, Paul Kivel, one of its founding members, shares an extraordinary approach to stopping male violence. The key is understanding and evading the cultural forces that box men in and often reward them for violent behavior. Through exercises, thought-provoking questions, and intense self-examination, Men's Work helps men learn new rules and new roles in personal relationships and in the world at large.

• May, R. J. and M. Scher (1988). Changing roles for men on campus. San Francisco, Jossey-Bass.

  This book, in a series by Jossey-Bass, describes the changing nature of men on college campuses. Research and practice are discussed.

• Pleck, J. H. (1981). The myth of masculinity. Cambridge, Mass., MIT Press.

  This book explores the many intricacies of masculinity, exposing its negative consequences on both males and females alike.

• Pollack, W. S. (1998). Real boys : rescuing our sons from the myths of boyhood. New York, Random House.

  With author appearances on Good Morning America, The Today Show, 20 /20 and NPR's Fresh Air, and featuring articles in Newsweek, Time, and The New York Times, Real Boys is one of the most talked-about and influential books published this year.

  Based on William Pollack's groundbreaking research at Harvard Medical School over two decades, Real Boys explores why many boys are sad, lonely, and confused although they may appear tough, cheerful, and confident. Pollack challenges conventional expectations about manhood and masculinity that encourage parents to treat boys as little men, raising them through a toughening process that drives their true emotions underground. Only when we understand what boys are really like, says Pollack, can we help them develop more self-confidence and the emotional savvy they need to deal with issues such as depression, love and sexuality, drugs and alcohol, divorce, and violence.

• Schultz, J. (2001). Getting off on feminism. Race, class, and gender: An anthology. M. L. Anderson and P. H. Collins. Belmont, CA, Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.

  From the Chapter: "When it comes to sex, feminist straight men must become participants in the discourse about our own sexuality. We have to fight the oppressive images of men as biological breeders ans leering animals. We must find ways in which to understand our diverse backgrounds, articulate desires that are not oppressive, and acknowledge the power we hold.

• Steinmen, G. (2001). If men could menstruate. Race, class, and gender: An anthology. M. L. Anderson and P. H. Collins. Belmont, CA, Wadsworth/Thomson Learning: 365-367.

  From the chapter: "Male human beings have built whole cultures around the idea that penis-envy is "natural" to women - though having such an unprotected organ might be said to make men vulnerable, and the power to give birth makes womb-envy at least as logical. In short, the characteristics of the powerful, whatever they may be, are thought to be better than the characteristics of the powerless - and logic has nothing to do with it."

• Thompson, C., E. R. Schaefer, et al. (2003). White men challenging racism : 35 personal stories. Durham, Duke University Press.

  White Men Challenging Racism is a collection of first-person narratives chronicling the compelling experiences of thirty-five white men whose efforts to combat racism and fight for social justice are central to their lives. Based on interviews conducted by Cooper Thompson, Emmett Schaefer, and Harry Brod, these engaging oral histories tell the stories of the men’s antiracist work. While these men discuss their accomplishments with pride, they also talk about their mistakes and regrets, their shortcomings and strategic blunders. A foreword by James W. Loewen, author of Lies My Teacher Told Me, provides historical context, describing antiracist efforts undertaken by whites in America during past centuries.

• Windmeyer, S. L., P. W. Freeman, et al. (1998). Out on fraternity row : personal accounts of being gay in a college fraternity. Los Angeles, Alyson Books.

  This book collects uncompromising first-person accounts of gay life inside a traditional homophobic institution, profiling more than 30 men who tell their emotionally charged stories.