Anthony Frosh speaks with Matt Tyler, Executive Director of The Men’s Project at Jesuit Social Services, about a fascinating study called “The Man Box”. The term “The Man Box” refers to a set of rigid social norms that shape masculinity and impact men's well-being, relationships, and behaviours.

Some topics include:

· Understanding what the Man Box is and it relationship with toxic masculinity as well as positive expressions of masculinity.

· How the Man Box concept was developed

· Impact of the Man Box mentality on men’s mental health and relationships

· Scope of any possible cultural or socio-economic differences, and why these differences are not so apparent

· Some changes from 2018 to 2024 iterations.

o Differences in perceptions of societal norms vs differences in personal attitudes

· Challenging harmful stereotypes and promoting more positive expressions of masculinity (rather than erasing masculinity)

· What age to introduce education re expressions of masculinity

· The future for Man Box Research

To find out more about the Man Box 2024 research, a comprehensive study that focuses on the attitudes to manhood and the behaviours of Australian men aged 18 to 45, visit the website at: https://jss.org.au/programs/research/the-man-box/

To find out more about the Men’s Project, developing “Good men. Respectful relationships. Safe Communities”, visit the website at:

https://jss.org.au/programs/the-mens-project/

Matt Tyler is the Executive Director of The Men’s Project at Jesuit Social Services where for the last six years he has led a team committed to reducing men’s violence and promoting flourishing amongst men and boys themselves. Prior to working at Jesuit Social Services, Matt has had several interesting roles with a focus on translating research into practice, including working as a Fellow for Harvard’s Government Performance Lab, with a focus on child protection.

This episode is edited by Shalini Sen. Marketing is the domain of Sarah Guy.