Michael Flood

• Gender and Sexuality Studies
• Professor at Queensland University of Technology

Programs that engage men and boys in health promotion and violence prevention are proliferating. Many aim to foster “healthy masculinities”, using education and support to involve men and boys in adopting more positive or gender-equitable forms of selfhood and relating. This paper offers a critical stocktake of 15 such programs in one state in Aust...

Scholarly work and public commentary point to the persistence of masculinity models characterized by a sense of entitlement, the exertion of dominance, and the justification of abusive behaviors. While there is abundant theoretical work on men and masculinities, fewer empirical studies have examined how young men develop their masculine ideals. In...

Any assessment of the evidence for gender transformative work with men and boys should consider the conditions that have shaped the emergence of this work. Male-focused gender transformative work has a history, or rather histories. Reviewing its evidence base in light of the forces and factors which have informed its emergence over time enriches ou...

The contemporary #MeToo moment has led to renewed concern about issues of masculinity and gender justice. This moment provides a strong warrant for critically analyzing different programmes for boys and men in relation to their capacity for gender transformation. This paper presents three such programmes located in Victoria (Australia) as case stud...

This chapter sets out the context for the book, exploring the role of masculinities in violent extremism. It also outlines the current challenges faced by scholars and practitioners on a global scale in addressing the rise of the far-right, Salafi Jihadism and anti-women online movements. We outline the key research questions and methodological app...

The final chapter returns to the key research questions outlined in Chap. 1 and will synthesise key findings into an accessible conclusion that identifies key intervention points for policy makers. We also explore implications for government policy, lessons for policy makers and practitioners (including law enforcement) and areas for future investi...

This chapter provides a detailed analysis of the views and agendas of those involved in violent extremism and the progenitor groups that may serve as gateways to participation. Progenitors are legal civil society actors who shared considerable overlap with extremist groups in their views. This includes men’s rights groups, far-right wing associatio...

This chapter outlines what is known about the intersection of masculinity and violent extremism, based on an extensive literature review. The literature review is composed of a systematic review of scholarly and policy literature on issues of masculinities in relation to both violent extremism and policies and programmes to CVE. It focuses on works...

This chapter focuses on exploring the intersection between mainstream (normative) conceptions of masculinity (derived from an international survey and 41 in-depth interviews with Australian men) and the conceptions evident in violent extremist groups and networks. This is based on a representative survey of Australian men on attitudes about masculi...

Increased public attention to issues of gender injustice has led to a proliferation of community-based programs for boys and men designed to educate for gender respect and gender justice. An intersectional approach to this work is now seen as imperative. In practice, however, this approach is far from simple or straightforward. This paper presents...

Text: https://xyonline.net/content/sexual-violence-prevention-men-and-boys-social-justice-issue Sexual violence is an issue of social injustice, and engaging men and boys in its prevention and reduction is a social justice project. A feminist and social justice approach to sexual violence prevention, first, recognizes sexual violence as a social i...

Low support for gender equality (GE) predicts attitudes supporting violence against women (VAW). However, little is known about the influence of attitudes toward different manifestations of GE. This study extends knowledge by assessing the relative strength of attitudes to GE across seven theoretically derived dimensions, and their association with...

Men account for approximately 75% of the one million annual suicide deaths worldwide. Emerging research indicates a link between suicide and men's active pursuit of hegemonic masculinity via emotional restriction. However, little is known of the continuum of suicidal men's emotional practice, and particularly how men mobilise emotions to actively p...

There is growing community and policy interest in educational efforts among children and young people to address pornography. Education on pornography increasingly is seen as a necessary strategy in the context of young people’s widespread exposure to pornography and the potential shifts in young people’s sexual and gendered lives and relations whi...

Full text: https://xyonline.net/sites/xyonline.net/files/2020-11/Flood%20Dragiewicz%20Pease%2C%20Resistance%20and%20backlash%20to%20gender%20equality%202020.pdf Resistance to efforts to advance gender equality is a common feature of social life, whether in workplaces and other organisations or elsewhere. In this article, we review the typical chara...

Although measurement and prevalence of digital dating abuse (DDA) in young people’s relationships is of growing research interest, youth perceptions of the behaviours and the impact on victims are yet to be fully understood. This study explored thirty-eight (16–24 year old) youth’s perceptions of DDA behaviours and descriptors of the emotional impa...

FREE AT: https://xyonline.net/content/change-among-change-agents-mens-experiences-engaging-anti-violence-advocacy-white-ribbon. ABSTRACT: How does men’s participation in the social movement to prevent violence against women change their relationships with other men and with women? How does it affect their understanding and practices of masculinity...

Full text free at https://xyonline.net/content/mens-experiences-agents-feminist-change What role do men have in the work of challenging gender inequalities and building gender justice? This chapter examines the experiences of men as deliberate agents of a feminist masculinity politics, exploring key challenges in men’s efforts to take up profemini...

Much of the work to engage men in preventing violence against women across the globe is profeminist—it is informed by feminist perspectives and done by or in collaboration with women and women’s organisations. Men involved in this work typically are expected to support feminism and to be accountable to women and feminism. But which feminism should...

Men’s responses to #MeToo range from enthusiastic support to hostile backlash. There are common forms of resistance among men to campaigns relating to gender-based violence, including defensive denials that men’s violence is routine (#NotAllMen), counter-calls to address women’s violence against men, and complaints that #MeToo has ‘gone too far’ an...

Viewed as strategic for achieving gender equality, involved fatherhood and the relationship between caregiving and masculinity are increasingly a focus of research. Qualitative research among thirteen urban-dwelling educated men identified as ‘involved’ fathers in Mizoram, Northeast India explores fatherhood in a context where childcare has long be...

Free in full text here: https://xyonline.net/content/gender-equality-engaging-men-change-0

See here for the chapter, and the remainder of the book: https://xyonline.net/content/new-book-engaging-men-and-boys-violence-prevention

See here for the chapter, and the remainder of the book: https://xyonline.net/content/new-book-engaging-men-and-boys-violence-prevention

See here for the chapter, and the remainder of the book: https://xyonline.net/content/new-book-engaging-men-and-boys-violence-prevention

See here for the chapter, and the remainder of the book: https://xyonline.net/content/new-book-engaging-men-and-boys-violence-prevention

See here for the chapter, and the remainder of the book: https://xyonline.net/content/new-book-engaging-men-and-boys-violence-prevention

See here for the chapter, and the remainder of the book: https://xyonline.net/content/new-book-engaging-men-and-boys-violence-prevention

See here for the chapter, and the remainder of the book: https://xyonline.net/content/new-book-engaging-men-and-boys-violence-prevention

See here for the chapter, and the remainder of the book: https://xyonline.net/content/new-book-engaging-men-and-boys-violence-prevention

Across the globe, violence prevention initiatives focused on men and boys are proliferating rapidly. Engaging Men and Boys in Violence Prevention highlights effective and innovative strategies for the primary prevention of domestic violence, sexual violence, and other forms of harassment and abuse. It combines research on gender, masculinities, and...

Violence against women (VAW) is a serious and prevalent problem globally. Societal‐level norms, practices and structures are among the factors contributing to it, sometimes referred to collectively as representing “cultures of support” for VAW. Understanding factors contributing to these cultures is important for prevention, but remains the subject...

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a common complex social and public health problem. Interventions for IPV male perpetrators are an essential component of an early and effective response. Yet little is known about how to engage men in interventions for help-seeking. Using the theory of planned behavior (TPB), we explored men’s perceptions of seeki...

Primary prevention has become a central focus of community and government efforts to address sexual and intimate partner violence. Primary prevention activities take place before violence has occurred to prevent initial perpetration or victimization. They address the social norms, inequalities of power, and other factors which lead to violence in r...

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 me...

Programs aimed at preventing violence against women have increasingly adopted bystander approaches, yet large gaps remain in our knowledge about what drives bystanders to act or not, particularly in settings where there is an increased risk of violence against women occurring. This article contributes to this gap by examining data from research wit...

See here for the full text, in PDF: http://xyonline.net/content/men-and-gender-equality-book-chapter

Citation: Flood, M. (2015). Men and Gender Equality. In Engaging Men in Building Gender Equality. Ed. M. Flood, with R. Howson. Cambridge Scholars Press, pp. 1-31.

Violence perpetrated by and against men and boys is a major public health problem. Although individual men's use of violence differs, engagement of all men and boys in action to prevent violence against women and girls is essential. We discuss why this engagement approach is theoretically important and how prevention interventions have developed fr...

Citation: Flood, M. (2013). Pornography, violence and popular debate. DVRCV Advocate (Domestic Violence Resource Centre Victoria), Spring/Summer, pp. 42-44.

One increasingly visible expression of alternative masculinities around the globe is men’s involvement in efforts to prevent men’s violence against women. Men who take part in such efforts, for example, as activists or educators, take up projects of personal change as well as wider social change. They seek to be “the change they wish to see in the...

Flood, M. “Preventing Male Violence.” In Oxford Textbook of Violence Prevention: Epidemiology, evidence, and policy. Eds. C. Ward and P. Donnelly. Oxford University Press, 2015.

What happens when men are the subjects of research? Gender and other forms of social difference are performed and negotiated in part through face-to-face interactions, including through such research methods as interviews and focus groups. When men or women conduct gender-conscious research with male research subjects, a host of issues are raised:...

Separated fathers often feel profound grief, distress, and anger at the end of their relationships with their partners and their children. Some participate in fathers’ rights’ groups, a movement which claims to advocate on behalf of men and fathers who are the victims of discrimination and injustice in the Family Court and elsewhere. Yet such group...

A new report describes an evaluation of the impact among students of two violence prevention programs run by the National Association for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect (NAPCAN). The report represents the first substantial evaluation of LOVEBiTES, a violence prevention program being run among young people around Australia, and contribute...

Around the world, there are growing efforts to involve boys and men in the prevention of violence against women: as participants in education programs, as targets of social marketing campaigns, as policy makers and gatekeepers, and as activists and advocates. Efforts to prevent violence against girls and women now increasingly take as given that th...

When men participate as students in Women’s and Gender Studies (WGS) classrooms, they undergo feminist change. They adopt more progressive understandings of gender, show greater support for feminism, and increase their involvement in anti-sexist activism. Male students in WGS classrooms benefit to the same degree as female students, showing similar...

Feminism's achievements regarding violence against women are a key target for the fathers' rights movement. This article provides an overview of the impact of the fathers' rights movement on men's violence against women. It documents the ways in which fathers' rights groups in Australia have influenced changes in family law, which privilege parenta...

Exposure to pornography is routine among children and young people, with a range of notable and often troubling effects. Particularly among younger children, exposure to pornography may be disturbing or upsetting. Exposure to pornography helps to sustain young people's adherence to sexist and unhealthy notions of sex and relationships. And, especia...

Attitudes toward men's violence against women shape both the perpetration of violence against women and responses to this violence by the victim and others around her. For these reasons, attitudes are the target of violence-prevention campaigns. To improve understanding of the determinants of violence against women and to aid the development of vio...

Carmody, M., S. Evans, C. Krogh, M. Flood, M. Heenan, and G. Ovenden. (2009). Framing Best Practice: National standards for the primary prevention of sexual assault through education. Sydney: National Sexual Assault Prevention Education Project for NASASV, University of Western Sydney.

The concept of attitudes has been an important component of campaigns to address men's violence against women. Attitudes have been examined in relation to men's perpetration of violence, women's experience of violence and community and institutional responses. In this article we argue that there has not been sufficient interrogation of the limitati...

Male-male social bonds have a powerful influence on the sexual relations of some young heterosexual men. Qualitative analysis among young men aged eighteen to twenty-six in Canberra, Australia, documents the homosocial organization of men's heterosexual relations. Homosociality organizes men's sociosexual relations in at least four ways. For some o...

Youth in Australia are routinely exposed to sexually explicit images. Among 16- and 17-year-olds, three-quarters of boys and one-tenth of girls have ever watched an X-rated movie. Three-quarters of 16- and 17-year-olds have been exposed accidentally to pornographic websites, while 38 percent of boys and 2 percent of girls have deliberately accessed...

Citation: Cowburn, M., and M. Flood. (2007). Pornography. In International Encyclopedia of Men and Masculinities, Eds. M. Flood, J.K. Gardiner, B. Pease, and K. Pringle. Taylor & Francis, pp. 489-493.

Discrimination against women in public sector organisations has been the focus of considerable research in recent years. While much of this literature acknowledges the structural basis of gender inequality, strategies for change are often focused on anti-discrimination policies, equal employment opportunities and diversity management. Discriminator...

This paper examines young heterosexual men's participation in unsafe sex. A qualitative study of young heterosexual Australian men's understandings and practices of safe and unsafe sex, involving in-depth interviews conducted with 17 men aged between 18 and 26, found that five principal themes recur in young men's accounts for the non-use of condom...

Flood, Michael, and Clive Hamilton. (2003a). Youth and Pornography in Australia: Evidence on the extent of exposure and likely effects. Canberra: The Australia Institute, Discussion Paper No. 52, February. URL: https://www.tai.org.au/node/915

Flood, Michael, and Clive Hamilton. (2003b). Regulating Youth Access to Pornography. Canberra: The Australia Institute, Discussion Paper No. 53, March. URL: https://www.tai.org.au/node/916

Cutting-edge scholarship in Women's Studies and Sexuality Studies recognises that gender and sexual relations are organised in part by local contexts and communities, personal and social networks, and other axes of social differentiation. Yet these insights only rarely have been applied to or tested among heterosexual men. This paper extends contem...

Violence against women is a significant public health issue. One form of violence against women, intimate partner abuse or domestic violence, is prevalent in Australia. In this article, we summarise the main theoretical and methodological debates informing prevalence research in this area. We explain why studies finding equivalent victimisation and...

Michael Flood argues that men's anti-violence activism is an important element in the project of ending violence against women (VAW). Men's groups focused on gender-based violence have emerged in over a dozen countries. In such mobilizations, members of a privileged group act in ways which undermine that same privilege. Men's efforts to end men's v...

My research involves a critical analysis of the sexual cultures of young heterosexual Australian men. This research is driven by the need to understand and prevent the heterosexual sexual transmission of HIV/AIDS. I focus on young heterosexual men’s understandings and experiences of condom use and non-use, given that condoms are a key means of prev...

This paper seeks to establish the extent to which the incidence of divorce and the character of the law regulating the legal dissolution of marriage can be accounted for by historical continuities and cultural traditions in distinctive 'families of nations' The research brings together the diverse traditions of comparative law and comparative socio...