When Help Is Harm: Health, Lookism and Self‐Improvement in the Manosphere

Summary & key facts

The authors studied an online "looksmaxxing" community that gets about 6 million unique visitors a month. They qualitatively analyzed 8,072 discussion-board comments. They found users judge men by strict masculine ideals, push for major body changes (for example leg-lengthening surgery or "mewing"), and create a culture of "masculine demoralisation" where men are called failures and sometimes encouraged to self-harm. The authors argue these practices harm the health of men who take part.

Key facts:

• The online looksmaxxing community studied receives about 6 million unique visitors per month.
• The researchers qualitatively analyzed 8,072 discussion-board comments from the site.
• Users in the community apply a hegemonic masculine gaze to critique men’s bodies, mentioning features like facial asymmetries and brow ridges.
• The community promotes substantial body changes, including leg-lengthening surgeries and techniques called "mewing."
• The authors identify a process they call "masculine demoralisation," where users are treated as failed men and are sometimes encouraged toward self-harm.
• The paper’s authors argue that looksmaxxing and similar self-improvement communities can harm the health of participating men.

Abstract

How do online communities impact men's health? How does hegemonic masculinity harm men's health? In this paper, we analyse an online looksmaxxing community that receives 6 million unique visitors per month and is aimed at men seeking to improve their appearance. We qualitatively analysed 8072 discussion board comments in total. Our findings first demonstrate how users apply a hegemonic masculine gaze as they critique men's bodies (e.g., facial asymmetries and brow ridges). Second, we show how the community encourages men to substantially alter their bodies (e.g., with leg lengthening surgeries or by mewing). Third, we argue that the community subjects users to masculine demoralisation, wherein they are seen as failed men and encouraged to self-harm. Drawing on masculinities theory, we argue that looksmaxxing and similar self-improvement communities harm the health of the men who participate in them.

Topics

Gender Roles and Identity Studies Gender, Feminism, and Media Media, Gender, and Advertising

Categories

Gender Studies Social Sciences

Tags

Gaze Gender studies Harm Hegemonic masculinity Hegemony Law Masculinity Political science Politics Psychoanalysis Psychology Social psychology Sociology

Conditions & symptoms

Depression Feeling disconnected from others Sadness or low mood