On ‘masculine armour’: social conditioning, trauma, and staying intact in the therapeutic space

This article, published in The Psychologist (British Psychological Society) online on 8 May 2026, explores how dominant masculine norms shape men’s experiences of trauma, emotional distress, and therapeutic engagement. Drawing on over a decade of qualitative and ethnographic research in male-dominated environments, the article examines how emotional containment and stoicism can function both as protective strategies and as barriers to recovery. The paper argues that trauma may be experienced by many men as a disruption to masculine identity itself, and advocates for therapeutic approaches that work alongside, rather than against, masculine identity structures.