A guide to gender-reflective counselling for boys, men and fathers
The interest in gender-reflective counseling abroad and a growing number of multilingual counseling services in Germany have created demand for an English translation of the guide since its publication in 2022. As part of the project „Greater involvement of men in gender equality policy – networking, counselling, addressing and support“ funded by the Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth, the Federal Forum for Men has republished the guide to gender-reflective counseling for boys, men and fathers in an English translation. With the English translation, the guide now also gives professionals without knowledge of the German language an overview of the topic of »men’s counselling«.
This guide has an introductory nature and aims to encourage people to deal more intensively with questions about masculinity in the context of men’s counselling. To this end, the guide addresses conceptual and methodological questions, provides pracitcal examples and offers further advice.
We all have to deal with gender images – their pluralization, but also their persistent effect – every day. This is also true for counseling – for the person asking for help as well as for the counselor. Men, according to a still widespread view, are not in need of help. In fact, men’s vulnerability is still often made a taboo, both individually and in society as a whole.
Given this situation, the question arises as to whether and how gender images and masculinity requirements influence counseling contexts. This is precisely where this guide to gender-reflective and masculinity-oriented counseling sets in. It explicitly invites men in counseling contexts neither to be understood as gender-neutral clients nor to meet them with unreflected gender-stereotyped expectations. The guideline wants to encourage to be sensitive in counseling processes for the effectiveness of images and requirements of masculinity: in the thinking, speaking and acting of male clients as well as in one’s own role as a professional counselor.
The guide is available free of charge. The Federal Forum for Men covers the shipping costs.
+++Important notice+++
For orders of more than 5 copies, please send an E-mail to info@bundesforum-maenner.de. Orders are collected and shipped in a two-week cycle. If you have any questions about the order status, please contact us.
A guide to gender-reflective counselling for boys, men and fathers
