Boys get the message at a young age: don’t show your feelings. Don’t rely on anyone. Vulnerability is a sign of weakness. This NPR Hidden Brain Podcast takes a close look at misguided notions of masculinity in the United States. The episode explores how these notions create mental health problems, physical health problems, and a growing epidemic of loneliness. The podcast concludes by considering how we might begin to tell a different story about what it means to be a boy/man.

Girls and boys face many problematic socializing messages about gender. These messages can severely burden their life trajectories. Therefore, it is incumbent upon schools and families to discuss and disrupt these problematic messages.