Online misogyny is a global challenge with far-reaching consequences for equality, safety and public health. It directly fuels gender-based violence (GBV) and technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) against women, girls and LGBTQ+ communities. While women and girls remain the primary targets, boys and young men are also affected both as potential participants in misogynistic environments, and victims of the same systems and norms that drive them.
Violence
In the field of violence prevention work with men and boys, there is growing interest in engaging men as fathers. Fatherhood is identified as a key entry point that can be strategically leveraged to support male engagement, both during men’s transition to parenthood and throughout their involvements as parents and caregivers.
Four streams of work have converged to shape interest in engaging men as fathers in the prevention of domestic and sexual violence:
In countries across the world, there are growing numbers of men taking action to help end violence against women.
And there are growing efforts to engage men and boys in prevention efforts: as participants in education programs, as targets of social marketing campaigns, as activists and advocates, and as leaders and policy makers.
Abstract:
Globally, 90% of firearms homicides are committed by men, and men also make up the vast majority of the victims. The highest rates of homicide are mainly found in cities in the Americas, including the Caribbean, and southern Africa., mainly in cities. “Men killing men” disproportionately affects young people in the Global South who live in precarious economic circumstances. This has been the consistent demographic of lethal armed violence for decades.
How can we engage male students and staff on campus in violence prevention?
I want you to think for a moment about the young men you see every day on your campus. The young men in your classrooms, in the cafetaria, in the college residences, and so on.
Citation: Flood, M. (2025). Online violence prevention education for students. Queensland University of Technology, unpublished.
Note that these notes also may be downloaded in PDF here.
What actions are needed to drive the engagement of men and boys in combating online gender-based violence? In these notes prepared for a UN Women event in Seoul, Korea, Professor Flood offers recommendations for programming and research to drive the engagement of men and boys in reducing and preventing online gender-based violence
Programming:
Zero Tolerance and White Ribbon Scotland have published findings from their research on how to frame masculinity, gender equality, and men’s violence against women to change men’s thinking and encourage action.