Gender Role Strain Paradigm

The gender role strain paradigm (GRSP) proposed by Joseph Pleck in 1981 in his seminal book The Myth of Masculinity remains the dominant perspective on the psychology of men and masculinity. Stemming from feminist and social learning theories, the GRSP has generated an impressive body of empirical and applied work with broad implications for men and boys, the girls and women in their lives, and society at large. The GRSP was proposed as an alternative to what Pleck termed the gender role identity paradigm (GRIP), which dominated research on masculinity for 50 years (1930–1980). The GRIP posited that healthy personality development relied on the adoption of a traditional gender role and the stereotypical traits associated with one’s biological sex. The GRIP asserted that men who ...