Parkes men are encouraged to take part in a world-first study from Deakin University looking for young men to open up about their fears, expectations and experiences of fatherhood, with the aim of improving the mental health of those in this crucial life stage.
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“At 33, many men will become fathers for the first time. But this is also a time when men are particularly vulnerable to stress and depression. At this age, suicide is the leading cause of death for Australian men and the male suicide rate is three times that of females,” lead researcher Dr Jacqui Macdonald said.
“The Men and Parenting Pathways study aims to get a bigger and more accurate picture about how a variety of men cope with family life including paternity; how men steer through workplace, relationship and social network changes; how they shoulder new responsibilities; and, how men connect with their children emotionally.”
Dr Macdonald, from Deakin’s School of Psychology, said the study had so far recruited 600 men, aged 28 to 32, to take part, but more were needed from rural and regional areas to give a better picture of those living outside Australia’s big cities.
“We know that rural Australians experience more psychological distress and suicide than urban Australians and have less access to services and greater social stigma attached to help-seeking,” Dr Macdonald said.
“Some small studies suggest that this might be because rural men are bound more by traditional expectations of masculinity which includes being stoic and not expressing emotions. Low levels of emotional expression make it more difficult to elicit the type of support needed during times of stress.
“This is quite plausible but we just don’t have enough data to know how accurate it is because large studies of men have not been undertaken.
“Accurately assessing how men are managing life’s demands across multiple locales will help us to provide the type of support that men need but are also willing to engage in.”
Dr Macdonald said she was hoping the research would help improve mental health outcomes for young men in rural and regional areas, potentially saving lives.
“Men are hugely under-represented in mental health research and in particular in family research, but more specifically we have very little information about men’s mental health at this particularly important age,” Dr Macdonald said.
“For men who go on to have children, their own wellbeing and mental health will be a key determinant of their family’s functioning and of their children's health and social development.
“For men who don’t have children, their social networks and supports vastly change at this time because their peers are starting family life.
“This means that there are intense pressures related to family, finances, friendships, careers and relationships for all men of this age.”
Participants in the study will be asked to complete a 20-minute online survey once a year for the next five years.
To find out more about the study and sign up visit www.mappresearch.org/mapp-5