MASCULINITY AS PREDICTOR OF SELF- COMPASSION

AND MENTAL HEALTH HELP- SEEKING

ATTITUDE OF SELECTED
MALE ADULTS

PSYCHOLOGY AND EDUCATION: A MULTIDISCIPLINARY JOURNAL

Volume: 15
Pages: 561-565
Document ID: 2023PEMJ1387
DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.10254649
Manuscript Accepted: 2023-14-11
Psych Educ, 2023, 15(6): 561-565, Document ID:2023 PEMJ1387, doi:10.5281/zenodo.10254649, ISSN 2822-4353
Research Article

Masculinity as Predictor of Self-Compassion and Mental Health

Help-Seeking Attitude of Selected Male Adults
Dorie Jorgie O. Atip*, Kristine Joy B. Galanza, Carmella M. Legara, Princess Charlote Maglonzo
Kierlsten D. Malupa, Russlyster D. Paquibot, Merly N. Ramos
For affiliations and correspondence, see the last page.
Abstract
A common tendency among individuals, particularly men, is to exhibit resilience and compassion
instead of openly revealing their genuine emotions. This aligns with the prevalent societal notion of
masculinity, where men often aim to embody the expected societal image of masculinity. For this
reason, males perceived help-seeking attitude (i.e., mental health problem) as a weakness, or
stigmatized, and therefore may refuse to seek help. This paper studied the relationship and impact of
masculinity to self-compassion and mental health help-seeking attitude of male adults. This was
achieved by employing a descriptive- correlational research approach, where data was collected from
400 participants using standardized measures, including the Conformity to Masculine Norms
Inventory-46, The Inventory of Attitude Toward Seeking Mental Health Services, and the Self-
Compassion Scale (Short Form). The study's results suggested that most of the respondents exhibited
lower levels of masculinity, coupled with a moderate degree of self-compassion and low levels of
mental health help-seeking attitude. Moreover, using Pearson correlational and regression analysis,
the findings of the study indicated that variables are significant and related with each other and that
masculinity has an impact on self-compassion and mental health help-seeking attitude of male adults.

Keywords: masculinity, mental health help-seeking attitude, self-compassion, male adults and regression
analysis

Introduction self-compassion and men's inclination to seek support

for their mental well-being.

Masculinity encompasses societal standards dictating
male conduct, often referred to as "male role norms,"
as well as masculine ideals, which involve the
internalization and interpretation of these societal
expectations. (Doss & Hopkins, 1998 as cited by
Johnson, 2018) additionally American Psychological
Association [APA] (Pappas, 2019) also defined
traditional masculinity as "characterized by stoicism,
competitiveness, dominance, and aggression [which]
is, on the whole, harmful." Men’s initial reaction in
dealing with problems is showing their strong and
tough personality because as stated by Schrock and
Schwalbe (2009), Individuals often believe that being
seen as a "true" man is closely tied to their actions,
which can discourage them from seeking assistance,
particularly when it comes to addressing mental health
issues. This reluctance to seek help might, in turn,
impede their ability to cultivate self-compassion, a
crucial element in effectively dealing with personal
challenges. Additionally, according to Vogel and
Heath (2016) help-seeking might be seen as
"feminine" or “non masculine” that represent as a sign
of weakness for depending on others. The emphasis on
self-compassion, specifically the acceptance of one's
imperfections, could play a significant role in
bolstering resilience regarding these concepts. Hence,
masculinity might exert significant influence on both
With this perception of society, 877,000 suicide cases
recorded each year (Department of Health, 2018, as
cited by Maravilla & Tan, 2021) with males reporting
higher rates than females as suicide cases are
occasionally mislabeled as "undetermined fatalities"
(Lally et al., 2019; Martinez et al., 2020). Additionally,
according to the National Statistics Office [NSO] as
cited by Lally, Tully, and Samaniego (2019) mental
health illnesses are the third most prevalent cause of
morbidity for Filipinos. Further, ≥3.6 million Filipinos
are estimated to be affected by at least one type of
mental, neurological, or substance use problem,
according to World Health Organization [WHO]
Special Initiative for Mental Health in the Philippines,
which was carried out in 2020 (Department of Health,
2020). The results of this study may serve as
supporting study to develop programs that will address
that mental health help-seeking attitude and could
enhance the level of self-compassion of Filipino male
adults.
Research Questions
This study, in general, is concerned with the impact of
masculinity to self-compassion and mental health help-
seeking attitude of male adults. It is specifically aimed
to answer the following questions:

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Research Article

1. What is the level of masculinity of the respondents? out for help (Vogel, Wade & Hackler, 2007, as
2. What is the level of self-compassion of the mentioned by Call & Shafer, 2015).
respondents?
3. What is the level of mental health help-seeking Masculinity and self-compassion
attitude of the respondents?
4. Is there any significant impact of masculinity to According to Levant and Pryor (2020, as cited by
mental health help-seeking attitude and self- Babu, 2021) masculinity represents thought process,
compassion of male adults? emotions, and actions that are seen as suitable or
unsuitable for boys and men, around which a clear
distinction has been established. According to WHO,
Literature Review men who uphold traditional masculine ideals, such as
independence, emotional restraint, anti-femininity, and
toughness, are more likely to refrain from discussing
Mental health help-seeking attitude in men
and getting assistance for mental health problems
(Gough & Novikova, 2020). Consistently adhering to
Help-seeking behaviors are “functional coping
traditional masculine norms has repeatedly shown
strategies that people use when they have to face
associations with a range of harmful consequences,
stressful events” as stated by Rickwood and Thomas
including elevated rates of depression, anxiety,
(2012) seeking support for mental health issues is
substance dependency, interpersonal aggression,
regarded as an adaptive coping strategy that involves
difficulty in forming close relationships, overall
reaching out to external sources for assistance. Help-
psychological distress, and diminished self-confidence
seeking can be categorized into two main groups:
(Mahalik, Good, & Carlson, 2010; Sloan, Conner, &
formal sources and informal sources. The formal
Gough, 2015, & O’ Neil, 2012 as cited by Craig,
category encompasses seeking assistance from mental
2018). With this data, men are expected to be more
health organizations and professionals, including
compassionate to themselves by seeking help to
psychologists, psychiatrists, counselors, and social
profession to avoid further damage however,
workers. In contrast, the informal category involves
according to Mosewich, Ferguson, McHugh, and
seeking support from non-professionals, such as
Kowalski (2019 men who strongly align themselves
family members, friends, and close acquaintances
with conventional male traits, such as emotional
(Camara, Bacigalupe, & Padilla, 2017 as cited by
reservation, are more likely to resist the concept of
Villamor, & Dy, 2022). There is some evidence to
self-compassion since it seems to contradict traditional
support the widely held belief that certain societal
masculinity. In contrast, self-compassion is associated
norms make males less likely than women to seek
with lower tendencies for self-stigmatization,
psychological help. As part of the process of
reluctance to seek help, and disclosure risks, according
masculine socialization, men are required to exhibit
to a study by Heath et al. (2017). The varying
signs and behaviors associated with self-sufficiency,
outcomes observed in studies concerning the
autonomy, and strength. They are anticipated to be
relationship between masculinities and self-
motivated by achievements, emotional self-control,
compassion might be clarified by considering that a
and a competitive spirit, yet these anticipations can
man's encounters and views on self-compassion can be
occasionally lead to harmful and unproductive
shaped by the prevailing masculine norms in his
behavior. Research indicates that men displaying these
surroundings, thereby affecting his propensity to
unadaptive characteristics are less inclined to seek
engage in self-compassion in particular circumstances.
psychiatric assistance and frequently lack awareness
(Reis et al. 2019; Wasylkiw & Clairo 2018).
regarding their own discomfort levels or indications of
illness. (Nguyen, Ming Liu, Hernandez, & Stinson,
2012 as cited by Craig, 2018). A substantial part of Methodology
this variation can be attributed to the impact of
conventional male ideals that emphasize the
significance of self-sufficiency, physical prowess, and This study employed a descriptive-correlational
emotional resilience (Addis & Mahalik, 2003; Fields approach with the aim of examining the significant
& Cochran, 2011; Fridgen et al., 2013; Vogel, associations between the variables. Additionally, it
Heimerdinger-Edwards, Hammer, & Hubbard, 2011, utilized regression analysis to elucidate the influence
and others as mentioned by Call & Shafer, 2015). In of masculinity on the attitudes towards seeking mental
men, seeking assistance from a mental health help and self-compassion among specific adult males,
professional is negatively stigmatized, they worry involving the identification of predictor and criterion
about facing judgment or exclusion when they reach variables (Dudovskiy, 2022).

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Research Article

Results and Discussion

Respondents Table 1. Levels of Masculinity

The respondents of this study are 400 male adults

whose range from 20 to 44 years old in Dasmariñas
City, Cavite, Philippines. In this study, it employed
quota and purposive sampling approach, in which the
following criteria of respondents are considered: (a)
male (b) belonging to ages 20 to 44 years old, and (c)
residing in Dasmariñas City, Cavite, Philippines. Table 1 showed that out of 400 respondents, 203
(50.8%) have low levels of masculinity and 197
Instruments of the study
(49.3%) are high. The result indicates that male adults
possessed of low and high masculinity because
Conformity to Masculine Norms Inventory-46
according to Vogel and Heath (2016), there may be
(CMNI-46) of Parent and Moradi (2009) which
certain factors such as culture, socioeconomic status,
assesses nine facets of masculinity: emotional control,
and historical context wherein males are pressured to
winning, playboy, violence, self-reliance, risk taking,
change their conduct and/or beliefs, especially in the
power over women, primacy of work, and
name of conformance to manly norms, problems
heterosexual self-presentation. This instrument is
composed of 4-point Likert scale ranging from 0 - develop. As a result, the distress felt could be
strongly disagree, 1 - disagree, 2 - agree, and 3 - connected to the conflict between one's sense of male
strongly agree. identity and their established values or belief systems.
(Chu, 2014).
Mental Health Help-seeking Attitude Scale, a 46-item
scale, that measures an individual's attitudes toward Table 2. Level of Mental Health Help-Seeking
seeking mental health services. This instrument is Attitude of the Respondents
composed of 5-point Likert scale ranging from 0 -
disagree, 1 - somewhat disagree, 2 - agree, 3 -
somewhat agree, and 4 – agree.

Self-compassion Scale represents the abbreviated 12-

item version of the original SCS developed by Neff
(2 003). The SCS was d evelop ed using an
undergraduate sample and has been used constantly to
measure self-compassion in literature. Item answers
are given on a 5-point scale ranging from 1 (almost
never) to 5 (almost usually).
Ethical Considerations
The researchers let the respondents signed voluntarily
the informed consent to ensure the agreement between
the participant and the researchers. This informed
consent stipulates all the ethical practices to be utilized
in the study such as protection of identity,
confidentiality, storage of data, and their right to
withdraw.
Table 2 shows the mental health help-seeking attitude
of 218 (54.5%) have low levels of mental health help-
seeking attitude and 182 (45.5%) have high. The result
indicates that most of the male adults have a low level
of mental health help seeking attitude because
according to Pirkis, Spittal, Keogh, Mousaferiadis, and
Currier (2017, as cited by Sagar-Ouriaghli, Godfrey,
Bridge, Meade, & Brown, 2019) negative feelings,
such as the belief that they signify vulnerability, hinder
men from seeking support from their friends,
ultimately affecting their inclination to seek help and
their treatment preferences in an adverse manner
(Seidler, Dawes. Rice, Oliffe, & Dhillon, 2016, as
cited by Sagar-Ouriaghli, Godfrey, Bridge, Meade, &
Brown, 2019).

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Research Article
Table 3. Level of Self-compassion of the respondents
Table 3 showed the distribution of results in terms of
self-compassion. Out of 400 respondents, 272 (68.0%)
have moderate self-compassion which indicates that
respondents need to think more on how to treat
themselves with kindness; 71 (17.8%) have low levels
which may respondents feel that they are depressed,
stressed and anxious; and 57 (14.3%) have high levels
indicating a good sensation of optimism and happiness
that is to decrease anxiety, depression, rumination, and
failure-related fear. The results supported by Maranan
and Lopez (2020) that despite men are having good
emotional control, they nonetheless feel inadequate in
the face of disappointments and take them too
seriously.
Table 4. Test of impact of masculinity to mental health
help seeking attitude and self-compassion
The findings indicated that masculinity significantly
impacted both the inclination to seek mental health
support (F=52.60, p=0.001) and the degree of self-
compassion (F=6.026, p=0.015).. This indicates that
there is high significant impact between the variables
therefore it rejects the null hypothesis. In the study of
Smith, Tran, and Thompson (2008) with 307
undergraduate males, in their research, it was found
that a stronger adherence to traditional masculine
ideals significantly correlated with more negative
attitudes and, in an indirect manner, led to a reduced
inclination to seek psychological assistance. Higher
conformity to these norms was linked to more adverse
perspectives on the idea of seeking psychological
support. (Levant, Wimer, Williams, Smalley, &
Noronha, 2009). Additionally, there is some evidence
indicating that conforming to conventional masculine
standards could hinder the development of self-
compassion. (Reilly, Rochlen, & Awad 2014) this
further supported by Reis and colleagues (2019) that
Atip et al.
men who exhibit more traditional masculine norms
appear to be less prone to participate in self-
compassionate actions or inclinations.
Conclusion
The researchers conclude the following results: 1. The
respondents have low level (50.8%) of masculinity and
49.3% have high level; 2. The respondents have less
likely to seek help in terms of mental health concerns
(54.5%) but 45.5% of respondents have still courage to
ask for help; 3. The respondents’ level of compassion
fell in three categories which are moderate (68%),
Low (17.8%), and High (14.3%); 4. The results of the
study revealed that masculinity has significant impact
to level of mental health help-seeking attitude (p<0.01)
and level of self-compassion (p<0.15) of the
respondents.
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