Of Boys and Men: Why the Modern Male Is Struggling, Why It Matters, and What to Do about It

by Richard V. Reeves

One of the most popular T-shirts on sale at his rallies declared, “I support Donald Trump. I love freedom. I drink beer. I turn wrenches. I protect my family. I eat meat & I own guns. If you don’t like it, MOVE.”9

Trumpists

In Germany, especially in the east, men

Communist influence perhaps?

In South Korea, young men are also swinging hard right, fueled by antifeminist sentiment.

Even Korean men are swinging right!

“These guys, these rootless, white males, have monster power.”17

Bannon says white guys have monster power.

what Hawley shares with these communities is a reactionary worldview, a belief that the only way to help men is by restoring traditional gender roles and relationships.

Lobsters don’t actually have brains, it turns out.

Lobsters don't have brains.

The broader problem here is that conservatives justify gender inequalities with biological explanations that are not wrong, just too thin to bear the weight they put on them.

Beautiful sentence.

George Gilder argued that feminism would render men redundant.

George Gilder said that feminism would render men redundant.

A man without a woman has a deep inner sense of dispensability.

Men without women are unmoored except Dany.

giving boys an extra year of pre-K before starting them in school; a recruitment drive of male teachers into classrooms; and significant investments in vocational education, including more technical high schools.

Three reforms he argues for 1. Giving boys an extra year of pre-k 2. Recruiting more male teachers 3. Offering more vocational training

Children with affluent parents are twice as likely to have a delayed school start as those from a low-income home.

Children with affluent parents are more likely to start school late.

children who are redshirted have slightly above average literacy and math scores when the decision is made.

Children who are red shirted have slightly above literacy and math scores at the time of the red shirting.

Overall, Schanzenbach and Cascio find that being a year older had a positive impact on test scores

in eighth grade, reduced the risks of repeating a grade before high school, and improved the chances of taking the SAT or ACT at the end of high school.

Red shirting seemed to help boys. Better tests scores, more likely to take ACT or SATs.

Many of the men had been advised to make sure they were never alone with a child, and to be wary of any physical contact.

Men stigmatized for being with children alone.

Black men account for just 2% of teachers in the U.S.45

Black men account for 2% teachers in U.S.

In fact, 16% of people with a high school diploma and 28%

of those with an associate’s degree make more money across their working life than the median person with a bachelor’s degree,

16% of people with a high school diploma and 28% of people with an AA make more money in their lifetime than the median person with a BA.

of Scotland, which as part of its Gender Action Plan has set the goal of reducing the gender gap in undergraduate enrollment to 5 percentage points. This will be a challenge, given that the difference is currently 17 percentage points.

Reeves wants to see the gender gap in colleges reduced to 5% from 17%.

He would pitch tents as “homework camps” and make the boys run after a rugby ball between assignments.

Pitch tents as homework camps

HEAL occupations—health, education, administration, and literacy

Health Education Administration Literacy

Health care and education are very large sectors, between them accounting for around 15% of all jobs.

Between health care and education are 15% of all jobs.

The Marie Curie Scholarship, for example, offers $80,000 to young women studying biology, chemistry, or mathematics at the College of Saint Mary, a private Catholic women’s college in Omaha, Nebraska.

Free money to study STEM in Nebraska

They showed that individual decisions are shaped not just by the hard numbers of a cost–benefit analysis but by the more personal aspects of human identity.

MTV’s 16 and Pregnant significantly reduced teenage pregnancy rates.

Didn't know that. This is good.

It is possible for norms and stereotypes to alter quickly once enough cultural momentum has been achieved.

Norms can alter quickly once there is a critical mass.

Subsequent studies suggest that this approach can backfire, by highlighting what psychologists call the “role incongruity” between ideas of masculinity and those of nursing.

appeal to traditional masculine norms, such as images of men playing sport or using technical equipment, and a strong emphasis on economic rewards, but alongside other images emphasizing the nurturing, people-centered nature of the work.

A better way to appeal to men

Progressives resist the idea that fathers have a distinct role to play, afraid that this will somehow undermine mothers or belittle same-sex couples.

Do they?

As far as Justice Ginsburg was concerned, to be a feminist meant supporting equal rights for fathers.

Being a feminist means supporting equal rights for fathers.

Engaged fatherhood has been linked to a whole range of outcomes, from mental health, high school graduation, social skills, and literacy to lower risks of teen pregnancy, delinquency, and drug use.

A study in the state of Georgia found that infant mortality rates were twice as high among children whose fathers were not listed on their birth certificate

Infant mortality twice as high for children whose fathers were not listed on the birth certificate.

Machin writes that “many dads in the West really step into their role during late childhood and adolescence, particularly when the time comes to teach their children.

Many Western fathers step into their role (become needed) in a child's late childhood or adolescence.

There is no residency requirement for good fatherhood.

No residency requirement for good fathers.

But they are also more likely than nonresident white fathers to be involved in their children’s lives in various ways, including helping with homework, taking them to activities, and checking in with them on their day.28

Good to know. Didn't think they had relationships with their children.

I do worry that the goal of public policy often seems to be to create work-friendly families, rather than family-friendly work.

Goal of public policy should be to create family friendly work places.

We likely feel differently about our lawyer or financial adviser. But it is important to remember that pharmacies used to be like that too, and had the gender pay gaps to match.

To those of us blessed to be dads, fatherhood is a core component of our identity.

Fatherhood is the core component of their identity for some.

I found that many people are really worried about boys and men, including the ones in their own life.

But it is liberal parents who are the most worried about their sons.