‘It’s pretty toxic… but just a little, I want to be like that’: what young men think of manosphere content

Young men in Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States are increasingly consuming masculinity content on social media platforms like TikTok. This content often promises self-improvement in areas like finance, fitness, and dating, promising to make young men desirable, confident, and successful. While some young men find this advice helpful, others see a darker side, including unsustainable lifestyles, exploitation of insecurities, and superficiality that fails to provide real, long-term wellbeing.

Policymakers, advocates, teachers, and parents are calling for change, but young men are often absent from these conversations. Our research brings their perspectives into the story, revealing that many young men struggle to navigate the mixed messages they encounter. Some view the content as a roadmap to success, equating financial security, a partner, a successful career, and a fit physique with self-worth. However, they also criticize the promotion of misogyny, violence, risk-taking, and health harms.

Young men expressed a desire for self-improvement advice without the misogyny, health risk-taking, and damaging stereotypes. They want to be seen as deserving of success without belittling others. Some young men identified vulnerabilities in themselves, while others recognized the susceptibility of others to radicalisation and online harm. While they could see the hate, many still tolerated misogyny and harmful health messages if it meant accessing the self-improvement advice they wanted.

To combat misogyny online, it's crucial to challenge complacency and hold platforms accountable for the content they allow. The digital duty of care legislation in Australia could provide young men with the ability to opt out of algorithms that monetise hate and drive harms to women, girls, gender-diverse people, and men. However, whether young men will take advantage of this opportunity remains to be seen.

This research highlights the need for support and messaging that emphasizes the shared benefits of gender equality, empowering young men to use their discernment and create a better digital world.