Men in Feminised Workplaces: A guide to overcoming stereotypes, challenging traditional perceptions of masculinity and creating new roles for men

»Male nurses – Is that really what It’s called?« »Aren’t all male hairdressers gay?« »All preschool educators do is to wipe children’s bums, isn’t it?« »Cleaning is a job for women, not for men.« Men working in women’s professions often give rise to a lot of prejudices. But why? Are these men less masculine than other men? Or do they rather represent a new, more tolerant and less stereotypical male gender role? If less restricted by stereotypes, are men then eager to challenge traditional dichotomised perceptions of man/masculinity and woman/femininity? By means of analyses of interviews with more than 160 Bulgarian, Danish, Italian and Polish men working in traditional women’s occupations, this publication tries to answer some of these questions.