Men still aren’t doing traditionally women-dominated work

Plenty of research has established that there are major gender imbalances in male-dominated careers that make it hard for women to break into those fields. What is often less discussed, however, is men's underrepresentation in professions dominated by women, like healthcare, early education, and domestic (HEED) roles. Social psychologist Katharina Block, along with several other researchers, recruited 173 people (79 male and 94 female) to participate in an online survey about the lack of gender diversity in HEED fields last year. The results revealed interesting data about the lack of urgency in our society to address this disparity.

Respondents to the survey's attitudes towards this gender imbalance were affected by whether or not they thought external boundaries were to blame for the disparity. Many believed "prohibitive norms" restrict women's entry into male-dominated careers more so than men's entry into female-dominated professions. Because people tended to see jobs like teaching and nursing as lower status, they were likely to explain fewer men occupying these jobs than women as tied to motivation and not outside barriers. When people attributed gender imbalances in HEED careers as a result of external norms, however, they were more supportive of changing the status quo.

According to a 2017 article published in the Journal of Nursing Education, although there has been an increase in men entering the nursing profession in the past century, men are still very underrepresented and face gender-based barriers such as lack of role models, gender discrimination, isolation and lack of history of men in nursing. In 2011, 9.6 percent of registered nurses were men. In the 2015-2016 school year, 11 percent of elementary school teachers were men compared to 36 percent of secondary school teachers. Block told the FBomb that "we do have pretty convincing reports that men who do enter HEED careers like nursing experience a good deal of subtle and sometimes overt discrimination that makes them less enthusiastic about staying in their job."

This disparity indicates that not only are men missing out on potentially rewarding careers that are "psychologically fulfilling and linked to better health," but also the potential benefit of "viable job opportunities in a tight labor market," according to the study. Earlier research also shows that men's participation in these caretaking jobs and roles would likely enable more women and girls to see themselves doing work that is less traditionally associated with their gender. For example, Block told the FBomb, "more male elementary school teachers could provide great role models for boys."