Forskning om män och maskuliniteter i Finland

Abstract

During the last two decades, several books and artides on men and masculinities have been published in Finland - mainly in Finnish. The purpose of this article is to make this research known for readers who do not read Finnish. The first wave of books on men in the 1980's were not related to gender equality, instead these books were mostly qualitative studies on men's relation to alcohol. The first bibliography on studies on men was published by the Council for Equality in 1986. During 1990's, several antologies with a gender perspective on men were published, where the relations of hegemonic masculinity, violence, sexuality, care, emotions, religion and sports were studied. A collection of men's life histories gave material to several studies, and at the turn of the century a critical perspective on men and masculinities became more explicit. Although the legacy of feminist theories is much respected, alternative ways of discussing men and power are also sought. As work with theories, concepts and methods proceeds, new empirical analysis of men's lives is also needed. Political and economical power as well as friendship and support have been evaluated as important future themes in studies of men and masculinities.