Michael Flood

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:

The following describes initiatives and strategies that can be adopted by Government that will build capacity in Australia to effectively engage men and boys in violence prevention. Note that these initiatives are focused on primary prevention rather than initiatives aimed at men and boys at risk of using violence (secondary prevention / intervention) or already using violence (tertiary prevention / intervention).

These notes were prepared by Professor Michael Flood in September 2021, to guide a largescale organisation in Australia in its development of bystander education to prevent and reduce workplace sexual harassment.

General principles for effective education

There are some general principles for effective education that can be applied to education and training strategies focused on bystander intervention in sexual harassment. Such strategies are more likely to generate change if they:

To what extent do people in Australia have anti-feminist attitudes? A number of Australian surveys support the point that significant proportions of the population endorse anti-feminist beliefs that men are treated unfairly or discriminated against.

There is consistent evidence that stereotypical masculine attitudes and norms shape men’s and boys’ behaviour in harmful ways. 

• Men who endorse traditional definitions of manhood are more likely to suffer harm to themselves.
• Men who endorse traditional definitions of manhood are more likely to do harm to others.

The following notes summarise the evidence of associations between men’s conformity to stereotypical masculine norms and a range of outcomes, including:

ASK A MATE is a new app aimed at boys and young men and intended to provide sound, evidence-based advice on topics including relationships, gender, consent, domestic and sexual violence, delivered by high-profile positive male role models who young men are willing to listen to.

ASK A MATE has been created by Beyond DV, an Australian charity focused on shaping a society free from domestic violence. 

Fathers have a vital role to play in preventing and reducing men’s violence against women and in building a non-violent future. 

Dads, Gender, and Violence Prevention

There is a strong rationale for engaging fathers in efforts to prevent men’s violence against women.

There is intensified attention in Australia at present to the messages about manhood, good and bad, that boys and young men grow up with.

There is now a field of programming and policy focused on ‘engaging men and boys’. This involves efforts self-consciously aimed at men or boys and addressing their involvements in gender in some way, and can be termed the ‘engaging men and boys’ field (Greig & Flood, 2020). The last decade has seen significant growth in this field. Programs and initiatives focused on men and boys have proliferated at local, national, and international levels.

This paper provides a critical assessment of efforts to involve men in the prevention of men’s violence against women. Although there is a substantial evidence base attesting to the effectiveness of at least some strategies and interventions, this field is also limited in important ways. Violence prevention efforts often have focused on changing men’s attitudes, rather than also seeking to transform structural and institutional inequalities.