More Femininity Equals Less Deviant Men...

Nofziger, S. (2010). A Gendered Perspective on the Relationship Between Self-Control and Deviance Feminist Criminology, 5 (1), 29-50 DOI: 10.1177/1557085109353892

We can ponder why it is that men are so grossly over-represented in criminal activity and other such acts of social deviance (or protest, depending on your politics). In her research study of 263 university students in the US, Nofziger (2010) found that self-control and femininity had links to deviance, but masculinity did not (p.45). Self-control, contrary to what the biological determinists would have us believe, is according to Nofziger, not a product of sex but instead, gender identity. Thus, it may not be true that men are just born that way. That is, bent. Crime prevention might be as straightforward as teaching boys and men to get a grip, if not also to share their emotions and other such traits that we ordinarily associate with femininity. All of which leaves me feeling a little bit confused, since I had long believed that self-control was a benchmark cultural ideal of masculinity. Men are supposed to hold it together but I can see, men are also supposed to lose it. Therefore, we need to pay more attention to how gender identity influences the actual performance of self-control.