Masculinities in Cyberspace: An Analysis of Portrayals of Manhood in Men’s Rights Activist Websites
1
Department of Sociology & Anthropology, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Edinburg, TX 78539, USA
2
Department of Sociology, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Academic Editors: Christine M. Robinson and Sue Spivey
Soc. Sci. 2016, 5(2), 18; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci5020018
Received: 12 April 2016
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Revised: 4 May 2016
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Accepted: 6 May 2016
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Published: 12 May 2016
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Backlash: Contemporary Obstructions to Social Justice)
A growth in cultural ideologies concerned with men and masculinities in contemporary American society has recently emerged. Men’s rights activist (MRA) groups embody a movement emphasizing the crisis of masculinity. Despite men’s privileged societal status, MRAs seek to establish resources for men to utilize in elevating their perceived subordinated position in society in relation to women and social minorities. Little research has systematically investigated MRAs on the Internet, which is rapidly becoming a primary source of information and social connectedness for people. Through a content analysis of the 12 most prominent MRA websites, we explore the various strategies used by contemporary men’s groups designed to provide support for men in their pursuit of social legitimacy and power. Two primary categories of MRAs with distinctive ideological strategies emerged from this analysis: Cyber Lads in Search of Masculinity and Virtual Victims in Search of Equality. Though both groups promoted men’s entitlement to social power, Cyber Lads utilized themes of explicit aggression towards and devaluation of women, while Virtual Victims adopted political and social movement rhetoric to address men’s issues. The implications of these websites are discussed in terms of gender equality and their potential effects on individual men and women.
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Keywords:
men’s rights; masculinity; manhood; websites; content analysis
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited
MDPI and ACS Style
Schmitz, R.M.; Kazyak, E. Masculinities in Cyberspace: An Analysis of Portrayals of Manhood in Men’s Rights Activist Websites. Soc. Sci. 2016, 5, 18. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci5020018
AMA Style
Schmitz RM, Kazyak E. Masculinities in Cyberspace: An Analysis of Portrayals of Manhood in Men’s Rights Activist Websites. Social Sciences. 2016; 5(2):18. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci5020018
Chicago/Turabian StyleSchmitz, Rachel M., and Emily Kazyak. 2016. "Masculinities in Cyberspace: An Analysis of Portrayals of Manhood in Men’s Rights Activist Websites" Social Sciences 5, no. 2: 18. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci5020018
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