ReasonTV | How is masculinity changing? | Ruth Whippman | Just Asking Questions, Ep. 30 @ReasonTV | Uploaded 3 months ago | Updated 2 hours ago
Ruth Whippman discusses her new book, BoyMom: Reimagining Boyhood in the Age of Impossible Masculinity.
Subscribe
YouTube: http://youtube.com/reasontv
Apple: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/just-asking-questions/id1719355507
Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/5SpySKAH3LuVyxXk0MF7tl
Text and links to sources available here: reason.com/podcast/2024/07/04/ruth-whippman-how-is-masculinity-changing
Are the boys okay?
For much of history, parents have preferred boys, perceiving them as the providers, the family legacy, the heirs to the throne. A dark consequence of China's 36-year-long one-child policy was a 120 boy to 100 girl birth ratio. But in 21st-century America, the script seems to have been flipped. The New York Times has run headlines like "Wanting Daughters, Getting Sons" and "It's a Boy, and It's Okay to be Disappointed." Boys are falling behind in school, are more likely to display behavioral problems, and are more likely to be both perpetrators and victims of violence. Shifting gender norms, changing conceptions of masculinity, and the pitched political battles around these questions have made boyhood—and parenthood—that much more complicated. Raising boys these days ain't easy.
Today's guest knows this all too well. Ruth Whippman is the author of BoyMom: Reimagining Boyhood in the Age of Impossible Masculinity, and the mother of three young boys. The book is about her experience as a modern "BoyMom" living in the hyper-progressive Bay Area, as well as what she learned from studying the psychological and sociological research on boys and from talking to boys and men across the country and the political spectrum about their experiences and, importantly to the theme of this book, their feelings.
Sourced referenced in this conversation:
The New York Times: Wanting Daughters, Getting Sons archive.nytimes.com/parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/12/04/mom-of-boys
The New York Times: It's a Boy, and It's Okay to Be Disappointed archive.nytimes.com/parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/11/19/its-a-boy-and-its-okay-to-be-disappointed
Gender differences in individual variation in academic grades fail to fit expected patterns for STEM ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6156605
Poverty hurts the boys the most: Inequality at the intersection of class and gender https://www.brookings.edu/articles/poverty-hurts-the-boys-the-most-inequality-at-the-intersection-of-class-and-gender/
Loneliness around the world: Age, gender, and cultural differences in loneliness sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886920302555?via%3Dihub
Provisional Estimates of Suicide by Demographic Characteristics: United States, 2022 cdc.gov/nchs/data/vsrr/vsrr034.pdf
Andrew Tate's 10 Rules of Life on Rumble (discussed at 55:28) rumble.com/v31ty5u-10-rules-of-life-by-andrew-tate.html
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro Monologue
01:24 Introducing Ruth Whippman
02:20 Nature vs. Nurture in Boyhood
05:31 Emotional Vulnerability in Boys
06:31 Parenting Strategies for Boys
09:56 Cultural Shifts and Gender Preferences
14:01 Raising Boys in Progressive Areas
27:28 Challenges Boys Face in School
41:34 Traditional Masculinity and Emotional Connection
45:47 The American Psychological Association's Stance on Traditional Masculinity
53:16 The Hero's Journey and Masculine Expectations
55:28 Andrew Tate's Influence on Young Men
01:04:18 High Agency Worldview and Self-Help for Men
01:14:17 Promoting Emotional and Relational Skills in Boys
01:16:19 Final Thoughts and Reflections
Ruth Whippman discusses her new book, BoyMom: Reimagining Boyhood in the Age of Impossible Masculinity.
Subscribe
YouTube: http://youtube.com/reasontv
Apple: podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/just-asking-questions/id1719355507
Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/5SpySKAH3LuVyxXk0MF7tl
Text and links to sources available here: reason.com/podcast/2024/07/04/ruth-whippman-how-is-masculinity-changing
Are the boys okay?
For much of history, parents have preferred boys, perceiving them as the providers, the family legacy, the heirs to the throne. A dark consequence of China's 36-year-long one-child policy was a 120 boy to 100 girl birth ratio. But in 21st-century America, the script seems to have been flipped. The New York Times has run headlines like "Wanting Daughters, Getting Sons" and "It's a Boy, and It's Okay to be Disappointed." Boys are falling behind in school, are more likely to display behavioral problems, and are more likely to be both perpetrators and victims of violence. Shifting gender norms, changing conceptions of masculinity, and the pitched political battles around these questions have made boyhood—and parenthood—that much more complicated. Raising boys these days ain't easy.
Today's guest knows this all too well. Ruth Whippman is the author of BoyMom: Reimagining Boyhood in the Age of Impossible Masculinity, and the mother of three young boys. The book is about her experience as a modern "BoyMom" living in the hyper-progressive Bay Area, as well as what she learned from studying the psychological and sociological research on boys and from talking to boys and men across the country and the political spectrum about their experiences and, importantly to the theme of this book, their feelings.
Sourced referenced in this conversation:
The New York Times: Wanting Daughters, Getting Sons archive.nytimes.com/parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/12/04/mom-of-boys
The New York Times: It's a Boy, and It's Okay to Be Disappointed archive.nytimes.com/parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/11/19/its-a-boy-and-its-okay-to-be-disappointed
Gender differences in individual variation in academic grades fail to fit expected patterns for STEM ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6156605
Poverty hurts the boys the most: Inequality at the intersection of class and gender https://www.brookings.edu/articles/poverty-hurts-the-boys-the-most-inequality-at-the-intersection-of-class-and-gender/
Loneliness around the world: Age, gender, and cultural differences in loneliness sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886920302555?via%3Dihub
Provisional Estimates of Suicide by Demographic Characteristics: United States, 2022 cdc.gov/nchs/data/vsrr/vsrr034.pdf
Andrew Tate's 10 Rules of Life on Rumble (discussed at 55:28) rumble.com/v31ty5u-10-rules-of-life-by-andrew-tate.html
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro Monologue
01:24 Introducing Ruth Whippman
02:20 Nature vs. Nurture in Boyhood
05:31 Emotional Vulnerability in Boys
06:31 Parenting Strategies for Boys
09:56 Cultural Shifts and Gender Preferences
14:01 Raising Boys in Progressive Areas
27:28 Challenges Boys Face in School
41:34 Traditional Masculinity and Emotional Connection
45:47 The American Psychological Association's Stance on Traditional Masculinity
53:16 The Hero's Journey and Masculine Expectations
55:28 Andrew Tate's Influence on Young Men
01:04:18 High Agency Worldview and Self-Help for Men
01:14:17 Promoting Emotional and Relational Skills in Boys
01:16:19 Final Thoughts and Reflections
