This paper investigates why men choose to enter social work, a profession historically created and dominated by women. Drawing on a qualitative interview with an experienced male psychiatric social worker alongside scholarly literature, the study examines the personal experiences, socialization pressures, and psychological motivations that lead men into this field. It explores how gender stereotypes, the concept of "discrepancy strain," patriarchal structures, and the desire for mastery all shape men's entry into and practice within social work. The paper also considers how male social workers can contribute positively to clients, particularly women and children who have experienced abuse, and argues that gender need not disqualify men from excelling in a caring profession.
Social work is a field that requires special abilities from those who choose it as a profession. These abilities — compassion, empathy, and sensitivity — are culturally associated with women, which forms the basis for the widespread assumption that social work is a more suitable profession for women. However, men choose to become social workers too. This paper explores why some men choose social work while others consider it an entirely inappropriate profession for men.
To investigate this question, a qualitative study was conducted, based on an in-depth interview with an experienced male psychiatric social worker. These methods were selected as the most relevant for addressing this subject. The results were not entirely consistent with initial expectations: more dimensions of the problem emerged than anticipated. In conclusion, the evidence shows that men who become social workers — even if they are considered intruders into a women's territory — are not anomalous individuals, as some believe, but people who choose this work for many of the same reasons women do.
The personal view advanced here is that men are as valuable as social workers as any woman working in this field. Experience and the willingness to help others matter most — not gender. The subject of gender differences in social work is worth researching precisely because of its connection to the everyday human differences and preconceptions we hold about which jobs are suitable for which gender.
Men as social workers have been studied by feminist writers and others. Christie (2001), in Men and Social Work, approaches the subject by examining how men can be integrated into social work, what specific contributions they can make, and what particular challenges they face when entering this predominantly female professional territory.
The most interesting aspect of this topic is the process by which a man becomes a social worker: the experiences that contribute to that decision, and conversely, the reasons that keep many men from choosing this profession. The study is grounded primarily in a qualitative interview and supplemented by relevant scholarly literature. For interpretation, narrative analysis was selected as the most appropriate method, given its chronological approach to evaluating past experiences and their influence on present and future life choices.
Social work is a field where women have historically dominated. Created and shaped by women, it is a profession into which men have had relatively few opportunities to enter — and even fewer to succeed. As Britton and Stoller (1998) observe:
"Throughout the history of social work, women, buttressing the profession through their talents and energy, have comprised the majority of workers (Trattner, 1989). In fact, many more women than men have sought graduate degrees in social work. Apparently, opportunities for women to pursue both careers and advanced degrees have expanded especially in the last thirty years while men continue to avoid entering a field associated with women. To legitimize social work as a profession, early leaders in social work — including Mary Richmond and Sophonisba Breckinridge — recruited men to augment the power, prestige, and status associated with social work (Williams, 1995). Men in social work, although few in number, still acquire a uniquely unearned prestige within the field and find themselves propelled to the traditional, high-profile administrative roles. Historically, they have been earmarked for these administrative roles to fulfil both macro systemic expectations and gender role definitions (Baines, 1991). Propagated in the inherent expectations within social work's 'organizational culture' and its history, the field sustains segregation as men tend to enter administrative and policy-oriented tracks (Christie, 1998)." (Britton & Stoller, 1998)
As this passage makes clear, men in everyday life carry a socially prescribed status that pressures them toward particular career paths. Other options are automatically treated as a wrong turn, which is not an encouraging situation for those who genuinely see social work as their calling. Men who have already chosen this career face ongoing questions about their identity precisely because they represent the opposed gender in a female-dominated profession. The issue is not about having done something wrong, but about the image they project in the eyes of others.
As Christie (2001) notes, drawing on Williams (1993): "Working with children, I frequently found myself to be the only man at case reviews, planning, or referral meetings. Sitting in a review in which I was the only man reminded me that I had chosen to work in a non-traditional occupation for men. Research on men who do 'women's work' has shown that they are far less likely to aspire to work in such fields in the first place, but if they do, then they may be suspected of not being a real man."
People are simply unaccustomed to seeing men as social workers, and restrictive reactions are, from this perspective, understandable. Gender differences have always existed and persist even where formal equality between the sexes is widely accepted. Society has not yet fully adjusted to accepting the other gender's traditional roles, particularly when men are concerned. As Chattopadhay (2004) writes: "Because of gender stereotypes, men are also missing a whole range of emotions and experiences that are immensely rewarding and socially valued. For example, in most cultures men are not expected to play a significant role in caring for children, or for sick parents, or to show affection and express their vulnerabilities in distress, since these qualities are typically assigned to women. Moving toward gender equality does not mean loss of masculinity. It does mean that men as a group will be able to share and be part of a broader, healthier, safer, and richer cultural experience."
Because of these entrenched preconceptions, a man who pursues a career different from what society expects of him will almost inevitably encounter difficulties. Britton and Stoller (1998) describe this dynamic clearly:
"Male social workers must subvert traditionally defined and socially normed male roles. When a man chooses to enter female-dominated professions, he may still incur stigmas that differentiate him from other males. Those who choose to enter the field may experience a 'discrepancy strain' — a failure to live up to the standards, expectations, and norms of their traditional gender roles (Gilbert & Scher, 1999, p. 108). As one male student relates: 'I can remember a conversation with my father before I made my decision to get a master's in social work. While he supported me in my endeavors, he raised many questions — Why do you want to enter social work? How do you think you are going to provide for your family and the lifestyle you are accustomed to?' Deferring to socialization pressures that still impel them to fulfill the 'breadwinner' role and avoid feminine characteristics, they may segregate themselves from women in the profession, selecting specialties or positions that society deems as more appropriate for men (Williams, 1995). They too may emphasize the masculine aspects of their jobs to 'reduce the dissonance between their professional and gender identities' and to justify their career choices (Christie, 1998, p. 506). Thereby, male social workers adhere more closely to the social definition of masculinity."
Despite these pressures, younger men entering social work hope to push through these barriers. Britton and Stoller (1998) note that such individuals "hope to advance research and social work services for men to circumvent the social and internal barriers to their full involvement with families and equal partnerships with their spouses. Our views seek to foster a shift in the social construction of gender roles and expectations, a shift toward gender equity."
Pease (2001) argues that the main theoretical framework informing work with men in human services is sex role theory. This approach draws on the theoretical ideas underlying liberal feminism, wherein women's disadvantages are said to result from stereotyped customary expectations internalized by both men and women. One of its major limitations, however, is that it under-emphasizes the economic and political power that men exercise over women. Male and female roles are treated as equivalent, which allows men and women to frame themselves as engaged in a common cause against sex role oppression — without confronting the underlying power imbalance.
What sex role theory consistently omits, Pease argues, is recognition of the extent to which men's gender identities are built upon a struggle for social power. The men who enter social work are notable precisely for not seeking that kind of power. As Pease (2001) writes: "Men clearly suffer from adhering to dominant forms of masculinity. Many men are now concluding that the social and political gains of having power over women do not outweigh the physical, social, and psychological health costs incurred (Newman 1997, p. 137). Most men, however, approve and support the overall system in spite of its burdens, and they simply want more benefits and fewer burdens (Ball 1996, p. 71). There is no evidence that liberating men from the traditional male sex role will lead to men relinquishing their privilege and social power. And yet this is where traditional approaches to understanding and working with men in social work are often heading."
"Sex role theory, power dynamics, and profeminist framework"
"Subject's life history and path to social work"
"Male social workers building trust with women and children"
Gillingham, P. (January 2006). Male social workers in child and family welfare: New directions for research. Social Work, 51(1).
Pease, B. (2001). Developing profeminist practice with men in social work. Critical Social Work, 2(1). Retrieved December 6, 2006, from http://www.criticalsocialwork.com
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