You Cool Bro?: Masculinity, Identity and Mental Health

Conformity to traditional masculine gender norms may deter men from seeking help for mental health disparities. Racism, prejudice and everyday stressors negatively impact mental health in black men. Primary non-economic and secondary economic stressors are forms of race related stress that intersect and combine with socio-economic status. Through secondary data analysis of the National Survey of Black Americans (NSBA), my research investigates the associations between traditional masculinity, racial identity, and mental health in African-American males. The NSBA collected data from 659 Black United States citizens 18 years or over. The purpose of this data collection was to provide an appropriate theoretical and empirical approach to concepts, measures, and methods in the study of Black Americans, and developed with input from social scientists, students, and a national advisory panel of Black scholars. The survey investigates neighborhood-community integration, services, crime and community contact, the role of religion and the church, physical and mental health, self-esteem, life satisfaction, employment, the effects of chronic unemployment, the effects of race on the job, interaction with family and friends, racial attitudes, race identity, group stereotypes, and race ideology. Demographic variables include education, marital status, income, employment status, occupation, and political behavior and affiliation. Respondents answered questions about masculinity, their racial identity, and their depressive symptoms. Data will be analyzed and the implications of the findings for African American men’s mental health will be discussed. Understanding these identities and their outcomes for African-American males is important, and findings will inform training for mental health providers