Volunteer COVID-19 Personal Protective Equipment Makers: Third Sphere Labor, Caring Masculinities, and Redoing Gender

In the opening months of the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S., thousands of volunteer makers stepped up to produce PPE through third sphere labor, volunteer work that emphasizes community maintenance. Drawing on 78 semi-structured interviews and 662 open-ended questionnaires, we consider how third sphere carework could destabilize hierarchies between public, private, and third sphere labor and in the valuation of feminized versus masculinized work. We find women and men makers differed in what they made, but not in their motivations for producing PPE or how they valued the work of other makers. Makers rejected the idea that they should perform such work without any appreciation from third sphere recipients, but private sphere demands limited women makers more than men. Throughout men makers' efforts, we find ample evidence of caring masculinities as a response to disaster. We conclude with a consideration of what these trends mean for redoing gender and third sphere carework. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Men & Masculinities is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

That Line in the Day: The Perceived Effect of Required Work From Home on Male Managers' Sense of Self and Wellbeing

Experiences of required work from home during the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the sense of self and wellbeing of men, especially managers, potentially shaped by positions that men take up within discourses of masculinity. Thematic decomposition applied to verbatim transcripts of semi-structured interviews with seven white collar managers living in Australia who identified as men revealed a challenge to the participants' productivity and subscription to the traditional masculine subject position of the "ideal worker";and dissolution of boundaries between home and work that prevented some participants from privileging their "breadwinner" subject position. The liminal space of the Home-Office needs to be negotiated to alleviate impacts on self, anxiety, and stress resulting from conflicting work and domestic roles. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Men's Studies is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Health and Male: The Effect of the Pandemic and its Inequities

The Covid-19 pandemic has generated differential impacts from a gender perspective on health. The highest mortality in recent years has been mainly in men, one in every 5 men has already died at age 49 in the Americas, whose main causes are preventable, associated with hegemonic male behavior. These antecedents acted consequently in the higher male mortality from Covid-19, greater occupation of beds, together with biological factors that predispose men to become more seriously ill. But the pandemic has also increased alcohol consumption, modified illicit drug use patterns, increased the risk of sexual practices with drugs such as chemsex. At the same time, it has been an opportunity for the involvement of parents with their sons and daughters, in the school work of the television study, in care and upbringing or, failing that, zero involvement, maintaining the affective amputation imposed by the patriarchal system. Finally, it is important to generate public health policies towards men, from a gender relational perspective, which will positively affect their own health, but also the health of couples, sons, and daughters.

COVID-19 vaccines, mobility, and pandemic bureaucracies: Undocumented migrants' perspectives from Italy's Alpine border.

While scholars have noted the deeply unequal effects of the pandemic containment, there has been limited attempt to map the socio-political lives of vaccination policies, particularly from the perspective of undocumented persons moving at state margins. This paper explores how undocumented migrants, who were predominantly male travellers attempting to cross Italy's Alpine borders, encountered Covid-19 vaccines and contemporary legislation. Based on ethnographic observations and qualitative interviews with migrants, doctors, and activists at safehouses both on the Italian and French sides of the Alpine border, we trace how mobility centred decisions to accept or reject vaccines were significantly shaped by exclusionary border regimes. We move beyond the exceptional focus of the Covid-19 pandemic to show how centring visions of health connected to viral risk diverted attention from migrants' wider struggles to move to obtain safety. Ultimately, we argue for a recognition of how health crises are not merely unequally experienced, but may result in the reconfiguration of violent governance practices at state borders.

Thermotemporalities, thermomasculinities: Uptime, downtime, and server heat in the digital Anthropocene

Amid a warming planet and a surge in digital activity precipitated by COVID-19 lockdowns, the ecological impacts of cloud infrastructures are of increasing interest to scholars and publics. Deemed "essential workers," data center operators maintain server uptime by keeping equipment cool (via air conditioning). Failure results in overheating and a state of service interruption called downtime. Drawing on ethnographic research in data centers, this article introduces the concept of thermotemporalities to illustrate how time, temperature, and expertise converge in novel formations. By attending to the embodied practices and discursive pronouncements of data center operators, I reveal how uptime (cold) and downtime (hot), a binary opposition, are performative genres rather than discrete referents. Emerging out of this dyadic interplay, I locate a species of aspirational identity I call thermomasculinities. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of New Media & Society is the property of Sage Publications, Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

COVID-19 Lockdown containment measures and women's sexual and reproductive health in Zimbabwe

The devastating COVID-19 pandemic and its accompanying containment measures brought exceptional challenges to the health delivery system, and in particular, women's sexual and reproductive healthcare (hereafter referred to as SRH). The re-routing of health resources and funding to mitigate the effects of the pandemic obstructed the provision of essential SRH services for women and girls. Coupled with the incessant socio-cultural and patriarchal norms and gender inequalities, the COVID-19 pandemic aggravated the pre-existing SRH disproportions already affecting women. By adopting a qualitative approach and drawing on the experiences of women from three high density suburbs in Harare. Firstly, the study sought to explore the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on SRH for women and girls. Secondly, the research sought to determine key drivers that affect women's SRH in the context of COVID-19. Participant responses indicated that the COVID-19 lockdown containment measures which confined spouses to the home setting for prolonged periods of time, which is in contrast to the norm, exposed women to SRH related challenges. Participants cited that (i) bruised male ego due to lack of employment as a result of downscaling of companies resulting from COVID-19 containment measures resulted in men asserting their masculinities through heightened sexual intercourse, (ii) restraint of movement resulted in limited time for men to visit their small houses and side-chicks or side dish (euphemisms for illicit sexual relations) therefore resulting in frequent and unprotected sex with their spouses, giving rise to unplanned pregnancies and increased exposure to STIs due to limited access to SRH services and, (iii) increased intimate partner violence (IPV) and sexual abuse. Therefore, the research sought to explore the response of religious leaders and faith-based actors to providing psycho-social support and safe spaces as ways of addressing intersectional injustices giving rise to SRH challenges for women and girls. Contribution: The intersecting crises of the COVID-19 pandemic have extensively hindered progress towards the promotion of women's SRH. Relating to sustainable development goal 3 (SDG3), the article acknowledges the trust and respect of religious leaders within communities as change agents who can encourage shifts in behaviour, beliefs and practices in ways that promote holistic SRH for women.

The role of the father in the care of the newborn in an intensive care unit during the covid-19 pandemic: a perspective from the new masculinities

Goal. To analyze the role of the father in the care of the newborn hospitalized in a neonatal intensive care unit. Methodology. This is a qualitative approach study. The selection of open sampling, convenience saturation, interviewing 10 parents where at the end 4 were analyzed where the interviews were conducted in the Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU). The data was analyzed using the Atlas Ti 8.0 program through categories and content analysis. Results. Parents need to face the stressful situation of having their child in an intensive care unit, train and learn about the baby's health condition, constantly carry out introjection and reflective self-analysis, delve into the spiritual component and also focus on the I work as financial manager. Conclusion. The father's skills in the care of the hospitalized newborn were identified, such as patience and passion to perform the role of father. It is evident that man has a fundamental role in the care of the newborn. Copyright © 2022, Universidad de Chile - Centro Interdisciplinario de Estudios en Bioetica. All rights reserved.

That Line in the Day: The Perceived Effect of Required Work From Home on Male Managers' Sense of Self and Wellbeing

Experiences of required work from home during the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the sense of self and wellbeing of men, especially managers, potentially shaped by positions that men take up within discourses of masculinity. Thematic decomposition applied to verbatim transcripts of semi-structured interviews with seven white collar managers living in Australia who identified as men revealed a challenge to the participants’ productivity and subscription to the traditional masculine subject position of the “ideal worker”;and dissolution of boundaries between home and work that prevented some participants from privileging their “breadwinner” subject position. The liminal space of the Home-Office needs to be negotiated to alleviate impacts on self, anxiety, and stress resulting from conflicting work and domestic roles. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of Journal of Men's Studies is the property of Sage Publications Inc. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Sociohistorical Analysis of Normative Standards of Masculinity in the Pandemic of COVID-19: Impacts on Men's Health/Mental Health.

Objective: This study aims to analyze sociohistorically how the normative patterns of hegemonic masculinity produced impacts on men's health/mental health in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: A qualitative study from a socio-historical perspective was conducted with 50 men based on an online survey. A semistructured form was applied. The data were analyzed by the Collective Subject Discourse method, interpreted in the light of the context of epidemic disease and hegemonic masculinity. Results: The experience of the pandemic exposed the normative patterns of masculinities from the consummation of acts representative of the pandemic context, which incited men to deny the existence of COVID-19 disease and to delay the understanding and adoption of measures to protect and control COVID-19. As a repercussion, men presented conflicts in the regulation of emotions; presented emotional suppression; were more reactive; felt threatened regarding the loss of the role of family provider, virility; and revealed a sense of invulnerability, added to the weakening of self-care. Conclusion: The discourse revealed that the men's behaviors are consistent with the characteristics of hegemonic masculinity, but express signs of recognition that this behavior causes harm to themselves and their health.

Conductas de cuidado y cocuidado en masculinidades en contexto de pandemia desde una perspectiva de género

El artículo tiene como propósito problematizar el género en tiempos de pandemia, reconociendo las conductas de autocuidado, emociones y percepciones de cambios de rutina en la vida diaria desde la perspectiva de los hombres. Desde un diseño mixto se accede a hombres y mujeres de diversas edades y territorios quienes responden, en el segundo semestre de 2020, un cuestionario semiestructurado que busca recoger sus experiencias en tiempos de pandemia. Los supuestos de trabajo se fundamentan en una visión de masculinidades hegemónicas donde los hombres cuidan menos de su salud, no expresan sus emociones y desarrollan menos tareas domésticas, volcando su vida hacia el trabajo. Se plantea el supuesto que los hombres más jóvenes tienden a alejarse de estas conductas y estarían desarrollando de forma tácita masculinidades contra hegemónicas, pues están compartiendo diariamente con mujeres de una nueva generación que en el discurso y en sus acciones buscan dar un vuelco al patriarcado. Los resultados dan cuenta que en algunos aspectos los supuestos se relacionan con los datos obtenidos en lo que refiere, principalmente, a las labores domésticas, gestión de las emociones y cuidado de la salud mental donde mayormente se establece la diferencia entre hombres y mujeres. Entre los mismos hombres no se observan diferencias importantes entre jóvenes y adultos, por lo que se hace necesario continuar educando a las nuevas generaciones sobre relaciones de convivencia más amigables y equitativa entre los géneros.Alternate : The article aims to problematize gender in times of pandemic, recognizing self-care behaviors, emotions, and perceptions of routine changes in daily life from the perspective of men. From a quantitative design, men and women of different ages and territories are accessed who respond in the second semester of 2020 to a semi-structured questionnaire that seeks to collect their experiences in times of pandemic. The research assumption is based on a vision of hegemonic masculinities where men take less care of their health, do not express their emotions, and carry out fewer domestic tasks, turning their lives towards work. The idea is put forward those younger men tend to move away from these behaviors and are tacitly developing counter-hegemonic masculinities, since they are sharing daily with women of a new generation who in their discourse and in their actions seek to overturn patriarchy. The results show that in some aspects the assumptions are related to the data obtained with regard, mainly, to housework, emotional management, and mental health care where the difference between men and women is mostly established. Among men themselves, there are no significant differences between young people and adults, so it is necessary to continue educating the new generations about more friendly and equitable coexistence relationships between the genders.

Men Tackling Isolating Gender Violence to Fight against Sexual Harassment.

Scientific literature has shown that both suffering gender-based violence and taking a stand against it could provoke severe retaliation from bystanders, including negative consequences on health. Together with some women, several men-defined as New Alternative Masculinities-have also contributed to fighting against sexual violence in several contexts, also suffering dramatic consequences, known as Isolating Gender Violence (IGV). This article fills the gap on inquiring how men suffering IGV due to intervening in supporting survivors has affected the men's health. Six in-depth interviews were conducted with men from different contexts and countries and men of different social profiles. The findings reveal how men's health is better protected when they build networks of support while overcoming the fear of retaliation in achieving to empower direct survivors. In addition, the results recognize men as crucial actors in the struggle against GBV and overcoming IGV, as women potentially do. This may inspire other men to intervene and break the silence regarding GBV in societies and institutions, as it shows that men and women together are needed to fight against GBV.

What's masculinity got to do with it? The COVID-19 pandemic, men and care

Early data from several countries regarding the gendered implications of COVID-19 suggest that men are more likely to die as an effect of infection. This has been explained by biological factors but also by behavioral and life-style issues characteristic mostly for men. What has not been widely discussed, however, is the analysis of the relationships between men's responses to the crisis, their (lack of) care activities, and certain models of masculinity that persist in many societies. In this paper, I use a three dimensional model of care – a) self-care, b) care for others, and c) care for one's society – in order to analyze how certain masculine behaviors, rooted in socially constructed gender performances, resonate with the COVID-19 pandemic. The data used in this paper are of secondary character and will serve to analyze the most common responses of men within the three dimensions of care mentioned above. The theoretical framework utilizes the notion of caring masculinity supported by an emerging theory of protective masculinity. [ FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of European Journal of Women's Studies is the property of Sage Publications, Ltd. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)

Gender and COVID-19 FERPA and disclosures of COVID-19 data on campus: A case study

Feminist insights have already played an important role in our rapidly developing understanding of COVID-19. Intersectional research has drawn attention to the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on women of color?particularly in the care industry and essential services?as well as the amplified discrimination faced by LGBTQI+ people. Understanding the pandemic as a gendered catastrophe builds outward from feminist anthropological research, thematizing two key areas: (1) masculinity and (2) the home as a site of gendered labor. Since the 1970s anthropologists have led scholarly debates about the domestic?public distinction, and since the 1990s they have incorporated feminist theory into the disciplinary mainstream's engagement with men and manhood. Paying attention to how familiar dichotomies such as nature/culture and public/private operate during the crisis can yield unexpected insights and alliances, offering powerful conceptual tools to turn feminist anthropology's lens on those most disadvantaged by COVID-19. The COVID-19 pandemic has created major compliance challenges for institutions of higher education, including in the area of student privacy. At various times during the pandemic, postsecondary institutions have been panned for their lack of transparency over COVID-19 infection rates on campus.

Men, Masculinities, and a Global Pandemic: Exploring the Politics of Masculinities and Interlocking Relations of Power During the Initial Stage of COVID-19

This article reflects on and analyzes interlocking relations of power pertaining to the politics of masculinities during the initial stage of the COVID-19 pandemic. Situated within the context of the current global pandemic, we apply masculinities theories, feminist theoretical insights, and cultural studies of men and masculinities to various social, political, and economic contexts. In this article we argue that the conditions created by the global pandemic in its initial stage fuelled the resurgence of hegemonic masculinity. Accordingly, we identify and explore how pandemic responses and outcomes have been impacted by masculinities while also examining white-hegemonic-masculine ideals during a time of crisis. Analyzing data from foundation reports, international organizations, and other materials connected to our analysis of white hegemonic masculinity, we discuss how, during the initial stage of the pandemic, vulnerable populations, particularly women and communities of colour, were impacted by a resurgence of hegemonic masculinity. We further discuss how during this time the increase in men's violence, women's disproportionate caregiving, and men's desire to appear strong and "manly" certainly implicated the ways in which hegemonic masculinity impacted the lives of women and children during a time of crisis. Thereby, light is shed on the multiplicity of complex and fluid ways in which the politics of masculinities shaped a global pandemic. Our findings have implications for social work practitioners and educators interested in gender justice.

It's OK not to be OK: Shared reflections from two PhD parents in a time of pandemic.

Adopting an intersectional feminist lens, we explore our identities as single and co-parents thrust into the new reality of the UK COVID-19 lockdown. As two PhD students, we present shared reflections on our intersectional and divergent experiences of parenting and our attempts to protect our work and families during a pandemic. We reflect on the social constructions of 'masculinities' and 'emphasized femininities' as complicated influence on our roles as parents. Finally, we highlight the importance of time and self-care as ways of managing our shared realities during this uncertain period. Through sharing reflections, we became closer friends in mutual appreciation and solidarity as we learned about each other's struggles and vulnerabilities.