This in an essay concerning the use of humor in male communication. Primarily, I have focused on studying how jokes can be used as a sanction for the training of members in a (male) group. I have found great inspiration in Goffman?s thoughts on a social face and the use of humor to protect this perceived face.Initially I started to reflect on men?s reluctance to discuss masculinity and their thoughts about the meaning of being a man. Every time I tried to hold a serious conversation, my male friends made a joke out of it.

The aim of this Master?s thesis is to examine how Ranma ½, one of the most popular Japanese Manga series, reflects the gender system in society. We have chosen to make use of two different gender theorists to determine if Ranma ½ follows the gender norms of society or not. The theoretical framework is based primarily on Yvonne Hirdman's theory of the two basic principles: the principle of dichotomy and the principle of hierarchy. Judith Butler's theory of performative gender is used as a complement.

Men commit more suicide than women all over the world. They commit more violent crimes and are more inclined to alcohol abuse. There are studies that relate this behaviour to the hegemonic image of masculinity.My work focuses on Switzerland. The suicide rate in Switzerland is worrying, for men between 15 and 44 years suicide is the most common cause of death. There is no national suicide prevention and no information or prevention that highlights the connection bet- ween the hegemonic image of masculinity and the suicide rates.

ABSTRACTTitle: Cultural dimensions? and their relevance in the interpretation of TV commercialsThe purpose of this study has been to explain the cultural dimensions masculinity versus femininityand individualism versus collectivism and see what their impacts on interpreting commercials are.We also wanted to see if there are any other important aspects to consider when looking at theinterpretation of TV-commercials. To fulfill this purpose we also used this research question:?How are the cultural dimensions relevant when it comes to interpreting TV-commercials?We used a qualitative approach when conducting this study. We found that the dimensionindividualism versus collectivism seemed the most applicable, while the respondents? answers fittedthe best to the highlighted theories.

ABSTRACTTitle: Cultural dimensions? and their relevance in the interpretation of TV commercialsThe purpose of this study has been to explain the cultural dimensions masculinity versus femininityand individualism versus collectivism and see what their impacts on interpreting commercials are.We also wanted to see if there are any other important aspects to consider when looking at theinterpretation of TV-commercials. To fulfill this purpose we also used this research question:?How are the cultural dimensions relevant when it comes to interpreting TV-commercials?We used a qualitative approach when conducting this study. We found that the dimensionindividualism versus collectivism seemed the most applicable, while the respondents? answers fittedthe best to the highlighted theories.

The purpose of this study was to examine why adventure treatment is mainly directed towards young men and how that can be related to the construction of masculinity.Our questions were:- What were the social workers thoughts and images about masculinity?- Why did they think adventure treatment were suitable for young men and for what reasons?- How did the social workers describe their role as treatment providers?This study was a qualitative study that was based on six interviews as well as observations. We tried to find patterns and deviations in our empirical material. Then we connected them with previous research and theories. The social workers described the typical client as a competitive kind of person, interested in physical activities and with boyish manners.

The purpose of this essay is to investigate the subject field of male vegans and masculinities through empirical method interviews and narrative analysis. The starting-point for this essay is animal ethics, feminist ethic vegetarianism and theories that suggest that eating meat is one part of the social construction of masculinities. The problem formulation is such as follows:How do male vegans construct masculinity? In an attempt to answer such a question there are three problem formulations:What do male vegans think about the connection between manhood and eating meat?How do male vegans relate to the norms in society?What do male vegans think of stereotype conceptions about vegans?I will come to the conclusion that male vegans think that eating meat, as well as drinking beer, is one part of the social construction of masculinities. Male vegans are aware of norms in the surroundings and the strong attachment of meat normativity in the western culture.

Societies are surrounded by unaware attitudes and views about what is masculine and what is feminine and this can contribute to people being raced differently. Boys and girls are shaped to think and act in different ways from an early age because of their gender. According to the curriculum in the Swedish school system, the school has an important task to prevent such perceptions young people have about sex and gender. Reading books are still a central source where students gather information in the Swedish school. Therefore, I find it interesting to examine how gender is produced in three Swedish reading books from three different periods (1950s, 1970s and 2000s) to see what similarities and differences there are between the texts and the study has been based on three questions:How are men/boys and women/girls described in the reading books based on their characteristics, interests and pursuits?How much space in the texts are represented by men/boys and by women/girls?What masculinities and femininities can be found in the texts and which ones are the most desirable?I have used a text analysis in my research to analyse the three reading books and based my theory on that gender is a social construction.

Introduction: Although life expectancy had increased in Sweden for many decades and several health problems had diminished over time, there was no change in men's risk behaviour regarding for instance high alcohol and tobacco consumption. Many of the gender differences in health that existed in society explained were due to power structures and beliefs about behaviour based on gender; a social construction that resulted in the relatively high valuation of men with a more masculine behaviour. Aim: This literature review aimed to study and identify the scientific knowledge regarding paternity leave and its impact on men's health. Method: A literature- based study design was used and the material consisted of peer-reviewed articles from which six themes were identified: alcohol, tobacco, stress, isolation, social support and mortality risk. Results: Divided into three parts, the results described the socioeconomic background of the men who took paternity leave, as well as the impact of paternity leave and masculinity as an impact on men's health.

AbstraktDenna studie handlar om förhållanden mellan femininitet/maskulinitet och lesbisk identitet med bakgrund av den heteronormativa genusordningen, vilken grundar sig i ett dualistiskt tänkande där kvinnor som feminina respektive män som maskulina attraherar och kompletterar varandra. Studien bygger på berättelseanalys av personliga berättelser skrivna av lesbiska kvinnor ur antologierna Tjejerna mot strömmen och Såna som oss, vilka tolkas utifrån en konstruktivistisk ansats och ett queerteoretiskt perspektiv. På detta sätt synliggör och problematiserar jag konstruktioner av lesbiska självrepresentationer och identitetsskapanden samt de möjligheter och begränsningar som dessa identiteter omringas av med bakgrund av den heteronormativa genusordningen. Utifrån detta kommer jag fram till hur de lesbiska subjektpositionerna öppnar upp för alternativa identiteskonstruktioner och begärskonstruktioner i relation till aspekter av femininitet och maskulinitet. Vidare resulterar analysen i ett framhållande av den osynliggörande tolkningen av lesbisk femininitet i termer av heterosexualitet samt den osynliggörande förståelsen av lesbisk maskulinitet som ett kopierande av manlighet och manlig maskulinitet.

This study focuses on single peoples construction of their lifes in relation to normative heterosexual coupledom. It is based on five interviews made with single women and men at the age of 24 to 51 who live by themselves. The queer theory which puts the heteronormativity in question is used as a theoretical framework. Discourse psychology functions as an analytic approach. It focuses on the use of language in the construction of reality in a world of determinant discourses.

AbstractIn this essay I am examining the representation of popmusic with particular focus on gender and identity in two youth magazines called Kamratposten and Julia. Using the method of Norman Faircloughs critical discourse analysis I have studied ten interviews with popmusicians from each magazine based on the theorys of representations, discourses within popularmusic and queer theory. The intention with this study was to examine how popularmusic is represented in youth magazines. If the magazines were reproducing femininity and masculinity in the interviews with the musicians, and in the representation of popmusic in the magazines. And also if there were any differences and similarities between the magazines regarding the representation of popmusicians.The analysis lead to the conclusions that how popmusic is represented in the magazines depends on what the magazines wan´t to represent on the basis of their target groups and ideologies.

Uppsats för avläggande av filosofie kandidatexamen i Kulturvård, Ledarskap i slöjd och kulturhantverk15 hp Institutionen för kulturvårdGöteborgs universitet2015:28.

The aim of this study has been to examine, describe and analyze how masculinities can be represented and understood among boys in a Swedish primary school context. The study was conducted within a school located in a small community on the country side. Through the use of a qualitative research design we interviewed 13 boys from the fifth grade of this school, who all got to express and reason their perspectives of what it meant to them to be a boy in primary school and how that could impact their social life. For a wider understanding of the different dimensions of masculinity we used R.W. Connell's (2008) theoretical framework, hegemonic masculinity, which implies that there are multiple definitions of masculinities that are constructed in relation to each other in a hierarchical order.

Media has a big impact on our lives and is one of the main channels for people to recieve information. When recieved, the messages creates a meaning for the people that read, hear or see them. In other words, media could be seen as a source for people on how to perceive the world and it gives a certain picture of what is ?normal?. We chose to do this study to get a deeper knowledge of how men and women are being portrayed in a Swedish lifestyle magazine and what messagest that sends out to the readers.In this study we have examined how men and women are being portrayed in the Swedish magazine Café, both in photographs and in text.