Masculinities and Challenges for Men's Health Marketing: A Content Analysis of Public Service Advertisements Promoting Preventive Medical Tests

Theoretical Background and research questions/hypothesis: U.S. men have higher mortality rates than women for most leading causes of death.  These differences often are related to men’s health-related beliefs and behaviors.  For many men, avoidance of healthcare providers is consistent with “hegemonic” masculinity, which holds that true manliness is inconsistent with seeking medical care.  Such men often view health-promoting behaviors as “feminine” or reflective of “subordinated” or “marginalized” masculinities.  Others see certain screenings as a direct affront to their manhood. Media play a critical role in the area of health communication and in the reinforcing of constructions of masculinity.  Several studies have examined health and the social construction of masculinity in media, such as men’s health magazines, newspapers, and commercial advertisements.  Because of their narrow focus, examination of PSA messages addressing masculinity and men’s preventive health screenings are a useful window into how masculinity is being conceived and presented in relation to desired health behaviors.  This study explored the following: (1) masculinities presented in the PSAs, (2) message appeals emphasized in the PSAs and the extent to which these message strategies address masculine barriers to preventive behavior, and (3) the preventive behaviors, if any, that were encouraged in the PSAs. 

Methods and Results (informing the conceptual analysis): This study examined constructions of masculinity in PSA campaigns designed to raise awareness among middle-aged men about the importance of preventive medical testing.  The campaigns involved a partnership between The Advertising Council and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.  Two campaigns were launched in 2008: the “Real Men Wear Gowns” (RMWG) campaign, which presents family images as a motivating factor for men to take a more active role in preventive health, and another campaign that with ESPN as a partner, encouraging men to pay attention to their health like they do sports.  In 2010, AHRQ and the Ad Council launched a new series of family-oriented “Healthy Men” PSAs.   All English-language television PSAs produced for the campaigns were obtained from the Ad Council database, allowing a content analysis of a census of the campaign messages. Variables examined in the PSAs included role, preventive behavior, communication strategies, and message format.   The RMWG and Healthy Men PSA scenes predominately target a subordinated, familial masculinity and emphasize warm, touching situations.  By contrast, the ESPN PSA scenes highlight a macho-autonomous masculinity and rely heavily on irony as a message appeal.  A majority of the RMWG and ESPN ads lacked a strong, explicit message advocating preventive behaviors. However, the new Healthy Men PSAs deliver a more forceful preventive behavior appeal.

Conclusions: A variety of contrasting masculinities and message appeals are evident in PSAs designed to encourage men’s preventive health screenings, although the explicitness of the preventive behaviors varies among the respective campaigns.

Implications for research and/or practice: Awareness and incorporation of theories involving competing masculinities is essential for health communication and social marketing scholars and practitioners interested in designing, implementing, and evaluating messages promoting men’s health.