Archive · 22 Jan 2026
Study Reveals Toxic Masculinity Less Common Than Believed
Researchers have been studying the idea of 'toxic masculinity' to understand it better.
They found that the most extreme and harmful behaviors are actually quite rare.
The study looked at over 15,000 men and found that only a small group, about 3.2%, showed very toxic traits.
Most men in the study did not show these harmful behaviors.
The study also found that men who were older, single, unemployed, or had economic struggles were more likely to have these toxic views.
This shows that toxic masculinity is not as common as some people think and is more linked to social problems than to being a man in general.
Only 3.2% of participants exhibited extreme 'hostile toxic' traits.
Over a third of participants showed little evidence of toxic traits, labeled as 'atoxic'.
Toxic masculinity is more prevalent among older, single, unemployed, or economically disadvantaged men.
The study identified eight factors related to toxic masculinity, including prejudice and sexism.
The term 'toxic masculinity' has been criticized for being too broad and needing clearer definition.
- Who
- Researchers led by Deborah Hill Cone and Steven Sanders
- What
- Study on the prevalence and characteristics of toxic masculinity
- When
- Data collected in 2018-2019, study published in 2024
- Where
- New Zealand
- Why
- To clarify the definition and measurement of toxic masculinity
- Term Origin
- Coined in the 1980s to label harmful masculine patterns
- Study Participants
- Nearly 50,000 respondents, over 15,000 heterosexual males
- Study Location
- New Zealand
- Study Year
- 2018-2019
- Hostile Toxic Group
- 3.2% of participants
- Atoxic Group
- Over a third of participants
- Key Factors
- Prejudice, gender identity inflexibility, sexism
- Profile of Hostile Group
- Older, single, unemployed, economically disadvantaged