Emotional experiences of participants in all-male psychotherapy groups

Abstract

Studies indicate that, except for anger, many men tend to avoid expressing their feelings, especially those feelings indicative of personal vulnerability and emotional dependency (Levant, Hall, Williams, & Hasan, 2009). Men are frequently portrayed as lacking the ability to recognise, own and find words with which to express their feeling experiences; this is captured by the term alexithymia (Levant, Hall, Williams, & Hasan, 2009). Defined by ‘restrictive emotionality’, alexithymia literally indicates ‘without words for emotions’. Roland Levant has contended that men who are strongly influenced by ideas of traditional masculinity tend to be alexithymic (Levant, Hall, Williams, & Hasan, 2009). The central aim of this study was to focus on and understand the emotional experiences of participants of all-male or gender-homogenous group psychotherapy of this study. The study used a qualitative approach to understand how men emotionally engage or do not engage and express their emotions. Men who had been in all-male group psychotherapy were purposively selected to participate in this study. In-depth interviews guided by a semi-structured questionnaire were conducted and analysed according to the thematic analytic method. This study explored and described the accounts of lived emotional engagements of male participants in an all-male psychotherapy group. The study sought to highlight the significance of an explicit masculine framework with male emotions within a framework of non-deficit assumptions. The non-deficit approach to men privileges the strengths and unique contributions that men make as partners and fathers (Dollahite & Hawkins, 1998).

This study explored and described the accounts of lived emotional engagements of male participants in an all-male psychotherapy group. The study sought to highlight the significance of an explicit masculine framework with male emotions within a framework of non-deficit assumptions. The non-deficit approach to men privileges the strengths and unique contributions that men make as partners and fathers (Dollahite & Hawkins, 1998). This study aspired to demonstrate that a gender-conscious model in working with male emotions enhances men’s capacity for a quality and depth of emotional engagement that echoes the more optimistic research on the male capacity for self-reflection and openness to subjective transformation (Kiselica, 2003).