title: Young men's vulnerability in constituting hegemonic masculinity in sexual relations.
abstract: This article reports on a qualitative analysis of the accounts of young men on their experiences of heterosexual encounters. Based on data collected in Ireland using 17 focus groups with 124 young men aged between 14 and 19 years (a subsection of a wider study), the manner in which intricate peer group mechanisms acted as surveillance strategies in regulating the young men toward presenting themselves in ways consistent with hegemonic manifestations of masculinity is explored. However, there were also elements of resistance to such a culture in the way in which sexual pleasure for some young men was derived relationally through giving pleasure rather than merely through mechanical, emotionally detached sexual acts that characterize hegemonic masculinity. In emphasizing male vulnerabilities such as uncertainty, fear, and rejection in the realm of sexuality, it is proposed that one must not lose sight of the broader context of male sexual dominance for which, as data indicate, men themselves pay a price.
authors.affiliation: UCD School of Nursing, Midwifery, & Health Systems, University College Dublin, Health Sciences Centre, Belfield Campus, Dublin, Ireland. abbey.hyde@ucd.ie
authors.forename: Abbey
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hyde
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Drennan
authors.forename: Etaoine
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Howlett
authors.forename: Dympna
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Brady
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D057228:Masculinity; D019529:Sexuality / Q000523:psychology*; D055815:Young Adult