Introduction: Masculinity, Identity, and the Health and Well-Being ofAfrican American Men

Jay C. WadeFordham University

Aaron B. RochlenUniversity of Texas at Austin

The status of African American boys and men is of significant concern. This article reviews the literatureon African American males within the field of the psychology of men and masculinity. We focus ontheory and research that describe African American men’s masculinity, and how traditional masculinityand racial identity relate to the health and well-being of African American men. The article provides acontext for introducing this special series of articles on African American men that advance ourunderstanding of psychosocial factors associated with the health and well-being of African Americanmen.

Keywords: African American men, Black men, masculinity, manhood, masculinity ideology, racialidentity, gender role conflict

Gibbs’s classic 1988 book, Young, Black, and Male in America:An Endangered Species, brought much needed attention to thestatus of young African American males and suggested that therehad been marked deterioration compared with past generations.Compared with earlier cohorts, young African American maleswere more likely to be unemployed, involved in the criminaljustice system, unwed fathers, and victims of homicide and sui-cide.

Almost 25 years later the status of African American boys andmen continues to be an issue of significant concern. For example,African American men have the shortest life expectancy of allrace/gender groups (National Center for Health Statistics, 2005).In 2006, the rate of new HIV infection for African American menwas six times higher than European American men, nearly threetimes that of Hispanic/Latino men and twice that of AfricanAmerican women (Centers for Disease Control & Prevention,2010). Further, African American men are six times more likelythan European American men to be incarcerated (National UrbanLeague, 2007). Lastly, the growth rate of African American menenrolling in college is the lowest among minority groups in theUnited States (Harvey, 2003).

While these data are discouraging, other research has high-lighted strengths, progress, and psychosocial patterns character-ized by resilience. Compared with the national averages, AfricanAmerican men had lower rates of alcohol use and binge drinkingfrom 2004–2008 (Substance Abuse & Mental Health ServiceAdministration, 2010), and lower rates of mood disorders thanboth African American women and Whites (Breslau, Su, Kendler,Aguilar-Gaxiola, Kessler, 2005; Brown & Keith, 2003; Robins et

al., 1984; Williams et al., 2007). Additionally, African Americanunwed fathers are more likely to live close by and visit theirchildren than Hispanic and White fathers, as well as pay childsupport at higher levels (Lerman, 1993). Lastly, between 1980 and2000, the number of Black men who enrolled in college grew by37% (Harvey, 2003).

Given the admittedly mixed findings regarding the status ofAfrican American men, researchers have attempted to understandthose factors contributing to disparities in health and psychosocialfunctioning. Most frequently researched have been sociodemo-graphic factors including age, socioeconomic status, employmentstatus, marital status, and education level. For example, unemploy-ment is associated with higher levels of stress and illness (Yen &Frank, 2002), and the unemployment rate for African Americanmen has been twice as high as that of European American men forthe past 50 years (Williams, 2003).

The effect of racism in its various manifestations has also beenan area of focus. Studies indicate African American men experi-ence racial harassment and discrimination more frequently thanAfrican American women (Sellers & Shelton, 2003). Further,research suggests the experience of racism might be qualitativelydifferent for men and women of African American descent (Mo-radi & Subich, 2003). Franklin (1999) described how AfricanAmerican men’s repeated encounters with prejudice and racismcreates an “invisibility syndrome,” defined as “an inner strugglewith the feeling that one’s talents, abilities, personality, and worthare not valued or even recognized because of prejudice and rac-ism” (p. 761). As African American men encounter prejudice andacts of racism there is an inner struggle for personal identity thatfosters inherent stress related to management of one’s identity(Franklin, 1998).

Exposure to racial discrimination is a stressor that can adverselyaffect one’s health (Krieger, 1999; Williams, Neighbors, & Jack-son, 2003). The chronic experience of racism has been identifiedas a risk factor for African American men’s physical health,including increased rates of cardiovascular disease and hyperten-sion (Krieger & Sidney, 1996; McCord & Freeman, 1990), as well

This article was published Online First August 13, 2012.Jay C. Wade, Department of Psychology, Fordham University; Aaron B.

Rochlen, Department of Educational Psychology, University of Texas atAustin.

Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Jay C.Wade, Department of Psychology, Fordham University, Bronx, NY 10458.E-mail: jwade@fordham.edu

Psychology of Men & Masculinity © 2012 American Psychological Association2013, Vol. 14, No. 1, 1–6 1524-9220/12/$12.00 DOI: 10.1037/a0029612

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as for their psychological well-being. “Racism-related stress” maybe a consequence of such experiences of race-related stressors(Clark, Anderson, Clark, & Williams, 1999; Harrell, 2000). Rac-ism, as measured by a range of measures, has consistently beenfound to be a predictor of psychological distress in working andmiddle-upper class African American men (Pieterse & Carter,2007).

Social science scholars and researchers have attempted to un-derstand and describe those psychosocial factors that are particularto African American men’s functioning given the structural con-texts of their lives. This body of literature has tended to center onfour themes: African American men’s constructions of manhoodand masculinity, male or masculine identity, racial identity, and theeffects of traditional masculinity ideology. Most of the early schol-arship on African American masculine identity and manhood inthe late 1970s to early 1990s originated in fields beyond psychol-ogy, in particular sociology, and therefore are included in thisreview.

African American Men’s Constructions of Manhood

Consistent with the broader psychology of men literature, theinfluence of male identity and socialization has been often positedas central to African American’s men’s mental health, typically innegative ways. Authors have theorized how African Americanmen negotiate their masculine identity within the context of asociopolitical environment that negates one’s manhood, which isparticularly acute for low income African American men. Racism,in particular, has been emphasized as having specific psycholog-ical consequences for the masculine identity of African Americanmen (e.g., Cazenave, 1984; Clatterbaugh, 1990; Majors & Billson,1992; Segal, 1990; Staples, 1978). Some constructions of mascu-linity have been viewed as dysfunctional and/or compensatoryresponses to racial oppression (Majors & Billson, 1992; Oliver,1984). One popular depiction is “cool pose” associated with themasculinity enactments of young African American men. “Coolpose” is characterized as “a ritualized form of masculinity thatentails behaviors, scripts, physical posturing, impression manage-ment, and carefully crafted performances that deliver a single,critical message: pride, strength, and control” (Majors & Billson,1992, p. 4). According to Franklin (1987), African American menare subject to a different set of socializing influences than areWhite men. They live in a different social reality and actually havea different masculinity. Franklin articulated the ways men mayvary in their experience of the male role according to one’sreference group. He provided descriptions of three referencegroups that African American men typically live in and interactwith, each having its own definition of appropriate male rolebehavior. The Black man’s peer group is marked by a hypermas-culine and misogynist adaptation that some African American menhave made to a racist American society. Norms include sexistattitudes, antifemininity, aggressive solutions to disputes, antago-nism toward other Black men, and contempt for nonmaterialculture (i.e., the nonphysical ideas that people have about theirculture, including beliefs, values, rules, norms, morals). The im-portance of this group to African American men is inverselyrelated to their socioeconomic status. The more influence the peergroup has, the less likely it is that the larger society will play a rolein defining male role norms. The subcultural reference group is

the African American community as a whole. Polarization ofgender roles is minimized, and men are expected to assume agender role that is not as traditional as the societally sanctionedone. Franklin asserted that historically the minimization of genderrole polarization was based on the importance of maintainingAfrican American unity and solidarity. The societal referencegroup is the larger U.S. social system in which societal definitionsof masculinity and traditional gender roles are embraced or emu-lated.

Research with African American men addressing constructionsof masculinity and definitions of the male gender role have beenconducted. Most broadly, these studies have found African Amer-ican men define manhood in terms of traditional aspects of themale role, including the importance of being a provider, aggres-sive, competitive, and ambitious, but the definitions also includenontraditional aspects (Cazenave, 1984; Hunter & Davis, 1992,1994; Pierre, Mahalik, & Woodland, 2001; Wade, 1995). Forexample, Hunter and Davis (1992) identified four domains ofmanhood among African American men: (a) self-determinism andaccountability, (b) family, (c) pride, and (d) spirituality and hu-manism. The researchers noted that African American men’s re-lationships with others are important in defining their manhood.

In an effort to replicate the Hunter and Davis study, Hammondand Mattis (2005) found similar results. They also found fourthemes in which men defined manhood as (1) an interconnectedstate of being (interconnection between self, family, and others),(2) a redemptive process (rectifying past behavior and recoupingone’s humanity through active family and civic participation), (3)a fluid developmental process (manhood as being and becoming),and (4) a proactive course (anticipating potential barriers or threatsto one’s identity as well as ensuring its maintenance by initiatinga set of positive life actions). These more nontraditional aspects ofmasculinity may reflect some of the core�Black cultural construc-tions of manhood that have helped sustain African Americanfamilies and communities over time (Hunter & Davis, 1994).

Traditional Masculinity Ideology

Masculinity ideology refers to men’s acceptance or internaliza-tion of a culture’s definition of masculinity and beliefs aboutadherence to culturally defined standards of male behavior (Pleck,Sonenstein, & Ku, 1993). Although there are many masculinityideologies, the masculinity ideology that has been examined mostwithin the literature has been referred to as “traditional,” which hasbeen described by several researchers (e.g., David & Brannon,1976; Franklin, 1984; Harris, 1995; Levant et al., 1992; O’Neil,1981). Conceptual formulations of traditional masculinity ideol-ogy in contemporary American culture have focused on thosestandards and expectations that have various negative conse-quences (Pleck, 1995), including antifemininity, homophobia,emotional restrictiveness, competitiveness, toughness, and aggres-siveness.

At present there are seven commonly used scales measuringtraditional masculinity ideology in the psychology of men andmasculinity literature. Research on African American men’s mas-culinity ideology has found equivocal results. Some research find-ings indicate that African American men endorse a traditionalmasculinity ideology to a stronger degree than European Americanmen (e.g., Levant et al., 2003; Levant, Majors, & Kelley, 1998;

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Levant & Majors, 1997; Levant, Smalley, Aupont, House, Rich-mond, & Noronha, 2007; Pleck, Sonenstein, & Ku, 1993, 1994).Yet, other findings suggests no differences between African Amer-ican and European American men in the endorsement of traditionalmasculinity ideology (e.g., Abreu, Goodyear, Campos, & New-comb, 2000; Thompson, Grisanti, & Pleck, 1985). It is possiblethat differences that have surfaced may be more influenced bygeographic region than race or ethnicity (Levant et al., 1998).However, two studies addressing dimensions of masculinity indi-cated that African American men endorsed the norm of “status” atconsiderably higher levels than European American men (Campos,1999; Lease, Hampton, Fleming, Baggett, Montes, & Sawyer,2010). The masculinity norm of status concerns men’s need toachieve status and others’ respect (Thompson & Pleck, 1986).

At this point, there are a few studies on African American menthat have examined psychosocial correlates of traditional mascu-linity ideology. This includes research on men’s health-relatedattitudes and behaviors, interpersonal competencies, and forgive-ness of racial discrimination. Traditional masculinity related torestricting one’s emotions has been identified as a factor associatedwith being less willing to forgive racially discriminatory experi-ences (Hammond, Banks, & Mattis, 2006). With regard to healthbehaviors, self-reliance was associated with behaviors conduciveto one’s health (Hammond et al., 2010; Wade, 2009) and alsorelated positively to health care utilization (Hammond et al., 2010).These findings contradict other studies on predominantlyEuropean American men and suggest there may be cultural factorsassociated with how self-reliance norms are perceived in differentracial/ethnic groups. Similarly, traditional masculinity norms of“toughness” and “status” were found to relate differently to inter-personal competencies with regard to work and romantic relation-ships of African American and European American men (Lease etal., 2010).

Gender Role Conflict and Racial Identity

A few studies have focused on how gender role conflict, afrequently measured construct derived from the broader genderrole strain literature, relates to African American men’s psycho-logical well-being and racial identity status. Men’s gender roleconflict is a consequence of conforming to or deviating fromtraditional masculinity (O’Neil, 2008). Research suggests that Af-rican American men may experience higher levels of gender roleconflict than European American men (Norwalk, Vandiver, White,& Englar-Carlson, 2011). Sources of gender role conflict may beattributable to the obstacles that racism and discrimination createin fulfilling traditional male role expectations. Additionally, gen-der role conflict may be attributable to competing masculinities–-one culture of masculinity developing from a European tradition,the other from an African tradition and influenced by a history ofracial oppression (Wade, 1996; Wester, 2008). Additionally, re-search supports the relationship between gender role conflict andpsychological distress in African American men (Carter, Williams,Juby, & Buckley, 2005; Wester, Vogel, Wei, & McLain, 2006).

To explain variation among African American men in theirpsychological well-being and experience of gender role conflict,Black racial identity theory (Cross, 1971; Helms, 1990) has beenfrequently used. Specific to racial identity and the psychologicalwell-being of African American men, research has shown that the

racial identity status of “internalization”—in which racial identityis internally defined and Blacks are the racial reference group–-was associated with greater self-esteem. On the other hand, the“preencounter” status (externally defined identity, Whites as theracial reference group) and “immersion” status (externally definedidentity, Blacks as reference group) were associated with greaterpsychological distress and less self-esteem (Pierre & Mahalik,2005). Similarly, with regard to racial identity and gender roleconflict (Wade, 1996), preencounter and immersion identity sta-tuses were associated with gender role conflict. Additionally, the“encounter” status, which is characterized as an “identity-less”status with regard to racial identity (Helms, 1990), related posi-tively to gender role conflict.

Two studies have investigated how racial identity may mediatethe relationship between gender role conflict and psychologicalfunctioning. In one study, racial identity attitudes fully mediatedthe relationship between gender role conflict and psychologicalsymptoms (Carter et al., 2005). This indicates that the relationshipbetween gender role conflict and psychological symptoms is trans-mitted by one’s racial identity status. In the second study, thepreencounter identity specific to viewing oneself negatively be-cause of one’s race partially mediated the effects of gender roleconflict on psychological distress (Wester et al., 2006). The re-searchers interpreted this finding to indicate that African Americanmen who internalize a racist understanding of themselves suffermore from their attempts to navigate the traditional male genderrole than men who internalize a racial identity based on an appre-ciation of their African American heritage.

In summary, earlier qualitative research has provided descrip-tions of African American men’s constructions of masculinity.Theory and research have recognized the significance of race,culture, and racism when describing masculine identity for AfricanAmerican men. To date, there has been considerably more atten-tion paid to the masculinity of urban and lower SES men, thoughaspects of African American manhood may well transcend socialclass (Wade, 2006). Scant research has examined how traditionalmasculinity ideology and gender role conflict relate to AfricanAmerican men’s psychosocial functioning. Comparatively, moreresearch attention has focused on the effects of racism and theconcomitant stress. Identification of gender-related racism has alsobeen frequently described (e.g., Franklin, 1998, 1999). However,we are currently lacking a measure to validate this construct.Lastly, to date, much of the research has focused on negativeoutcomes and risk factors. Research on understanding the protec-tive factors contributing to the health and well-being of AfricanAmerican men is needed, particularly with regard to the psycho-logical aspects of masculinity and identity.

Continued Research on African American Men: AnIntroduction to the Special Series

In this special series of articles, the authors advance our under-standing of many of these psychosocial factors associated with thehealth and well-being of African American men.

In a qualitative study, Roberts-Douglass and Curtis-Boles(2013) help us understand how African American men developtheir masculine identity and constructions of manhood by analyz-ing men’s responses of their masculine identity development dur-ing adolescence. They explore variability in how masculine iden-

3HEALTH AND WELL-BEING OF AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN

tities are conceptualized and negotiated among African Americanmales of diverse socioeconomic backgrounds. This data providespractical implications that lead to more positive psychosocialoutcomes and definitions of manhood.

To further our understanding of the experience of AfricanAmerican men’s racism-related stress, Schwing, Wong, and Fann(2013) have created a new measure of racism-related stress forAfrican American men. The measure has promising utility forresearch on how African American men’s experiences of genderedracism contribute to their physical and mental health outcomes.With increased knowledge of the effects of racism on AfricanAmerican men, clinicians may be better equipped to address issuesthat affect the health and well-being of this population.

Bowleg and colleagues (2013) addressed how African Amer-ican men of low socioeconomic status understand and negotiatethe structural contexts of their lives in a second revealingqualitative study. In this project, the voices of lived experienceof African American men point to the issues of unemployment,incarceration, racial microagressions, police harassment, andthe stress of “the streets.” Gender role strain and psychologicaldistress are the concomitants. These researchers also identifiedthe psychological resilience of African American men in theways that they cope with their structural challenge. Such workhighlights the need for health behavior interventions to capital-ize on the existing assets and strengths of low-income urbanAfrican American men.

Next, two studies focus on risk and protective factors in therelationship between African American men’s experience ofracial discrimination and psychological distress. Powell Ham-mond and colleagues (2013) investigated the effects of mascu-line self-reliance and John Henryism as appraisal mechanismsunderlying the racial discrimination-depressive symptoms rela-tionship. Masculine self-reliance is examined as a risk factor,whereas John Henryism is posited as a protective factor. JohnHenryism is defined as a “strong behavioral predisposition tocope actively with psychosocial environmental stressors”(James, 1994, p. 163) and is characterized by three factors: (1)efficacious mental and physical vigor; (2) a strong commitmentto hard work; and (3) a single-minded determination to succeed(James, 1994).

Caldwell and colleagues (2013) further this area of research byexamining risk and protective factors for depressive symptoms anddrinking behavior among nonresident African American fatherswith preadolescent sons. In this project, the researchers differen-tiated masculinity ideologies whereby certain masculine beliefswere risk factors whereas other beliefs about masculinity wereprotective. The importance of parenting is highlighted as a protec-tive factor against depressive symptoms and frequency of alcoholuse.

Lastly, Gordon and colleagues’ (2013) research on incarceratedAfrican American men is unique in its examination of how mas-culinity norms and social support interact to predict length ofincarceration. Given the overrepresentation of African Americanmen in the criminal justice system, their study provides newinformation with promising implications for the development ofinterventions aimed at reducing incarceration and preventing re-cidivism.

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Received June 15, 2012Revision received June 25, 2012

Accepted June 25, 2012 �

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