Challenging hegemonic masculinity by performance of ethnic habitus

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The aim of this article is to examine the effect of ethnic habitus, in a specific setting, on the construction of alternative dominant masculinity and the challenge of hegemonic masculinity. Based on Bourdieu's notion of habitus, the article will show that in a specific ethno-cultural setting, characterized by ethnic habitus, marginalized groups construct and perform situated dominant masculinity. The study is based on the military, which is a central organization for the construction of masculine identities, and will focus specifically on combat soldiers, who constitute the most significant model of idealized masculinity. Based on semi-structured interviews, this micro-level study demonstrates the part of self-performance in the construction of masculinity and the challenge of hegemonic masculinity. Furthermore, illustrating the performance of worthy dominant masculinity by inferior ethnic groups in effect exposes the separation between the social status and the masculine status. Separation between social status and masculine status gives emphasis to masculinity as relational and contextual social practice and enables alternative dominant masculinities to be detected that challenge hegemonic masculinity within different settings.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1489-1505
Number of pages17
JournalGender, Work and Organization
Volume26
Issue number10
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Oct 2019

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 John Wiley & Sons Ltd

Keywords

  • Bourdieu
  • ethnicity
  • Goffman
  • hegemonic masculinity
  • military

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Challenging hegemonic masculinity by performance of ethnic habitus'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this