School of Health & Science, Dundalk Institute of Technology, Dundalk, Ireland.
School of Education, Federation University, Mount Helen Campus, Ballarat, Australia.
Health Soc Care Community. 2022 Nov;30(6):e4355-e4362. doi: 10.1111/hsc.13828. Epub 2022 May 16.
Older men are less likely than women to meet in social groups and have greater difficulty developing social relationships beyond paid work. Yet they are joining Men's Sheds in ever greater numbers, often with the support of women, as wives, partners and daughters. Little is known about women's perspectives of Men's Sheds and what women get from men's participation in Sheds. Informed by social role theory, the present study explored narratives from 26 significant women of male Shedders in Ireland and Australia. The narratives reveal how gender roles and unspoken rules shape people's lives, with three overarching themes emerging. These include (1) older men being vulnerable, with subthemes men's masculine persona, and women's vigilance, (2) gendered spaces for older men, with subthemes companionship: men mending men and healing in the Shed and (3) the spill over effects of Men's Sheds. Retirement, whether planned or prompted by ill-health, ushers in a new stage of life, requiring new routines and social contacts. For men who lived their life according to gender social roles, which perceive men as masculine, independent and assertive and not inclined to open display of emotion and affection, adjusting to certain aspects of retirement may be difficult, particularly the lack of purposeful activity. Conversely, for women social role identity may be a source of strength for recognising and accepting vulnerability, and for seeking help. Our findings suggest women are central in encouraging older men to join Men's Sheds. In turn, women may experience an alleviation of stress when men participate in Sheds because they are not under the same pressure of their traditional social roles as carers and nurturers.
相较于女性，老年男性较少参加社交团体，也更难以在工作以外发展社交关系。然而，越来越多的老年男性加入了男性棚屋组织，而且通常是在女性——妻子、伴侣和女儿的支持下加入的。人们对女性对男性棚屋的看法以及女性从男性参与棚屋中获得了什么知之甚少。本研究以社会角色理论为基础，探讨了来自爱尔兰和澳大利亚的 26 位男性棚屋成员的重要女性的叙述。这些叙述揭示了性别角色和不成文的规则如何塑造人们的生活，出现了三个主要主题。这些主题包括：（1）老年男性很脆弱，有男性的阳刚气质和女性警惕性的子主题；（2）为老年男性提供的性别化空间，有同伴关系：男人在棚屋里互相帮助和疗愈的子主题；（3）男性棚屋的溢出效应。退休，无论是有计划的还是因健康状况不佳而被迫的，都会开启人生的新阶段，需要新的日常生活和社交联系。对于那些按照性别社会角色生活的男性来说，这些角色认为男性应该具有男子气概、独立和自信，不倾向于公开表达情感和感情，因此适应退休生活的某些方面可能会很困难，特别是缺乏有目的的活动。相比之下，对于女性来说，社会角色认同可能是认识和接受脆弱性的力量源泉，也是寻求帮助的力量源泉。我们的研究结果表明，女性在鼓励老年男性加入男性棚屋方面起着核心作用。反过来，当男性参与棚屋时，女性可能会感到压力减轻，因为她们不像传统的照顾者和养育者那样承受着同样的社会角色压力。
