Male bonding

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Male bonding is a term that is used in ethology, social science, and in general usage to describe patterns of friendship and/or cooperation in men (or, in the case of ethology, males of various species). The exact meaning of the term differs across contexts.

In the context of human relationships, male bonding is used to describe friendship between men, or the way in which men befriend each other. The expression is sometimes used synonymously with the word camaraderie. Friendships among men are often primarily based on shared activities and ambitions, instead of emotional sharing (which is common of women's friendships). This can include playing musical instruments, video games, business ventures, creative endeavors, journeys, quests, sporting activities, fishing, hunting, camping, gambling, social drinking, or working with tools. The first widely-noticed use of the term was in Men in Groups (1969; 2004) by anthropologist Lionel Tiger.

See also

• Bachelor band
• Bromance
• Female bonding
• Homosociality
• Human bonding
• Man cave
• Masculine psychology
• Men's spaces

Further reading

• Brehm, S.S., Miller, R.S., Perlman, D. & Campbell, S.M. (1992). Intimate relationships. Third edition, chapter 7: paragraph about "gender differences in same-sex friendships", pp. 212–213.
• Fanning, Patrick & McKay, Matthew. (1993). Being a friend: Making and keeping male friends. In Being a man: A guide to the new masculinity (pp. 108–125). Oakland, CA: New Harbinger Publications, Inc.
• Garfinkel, Perry. (1992). "In a man's world: Father, son, brother, friend, and other roles men play." Berkeley, CA: Ten Speed Press.
• Miller, Stuart. (1986). "Men & friendship." Bath, England: Gateway Books.
• Nardi, Peter. (1999). Gay Men's Friendships: Invincible Communities. U. of Chicago Press.
• Nardi, Peter. (1992). "Men's friendships" (Research on men and masculinities series). Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.
• Pasick, Robert S. (1990). Friendship between men. In Meth, Richard L., Pasick, Robert S., et al., Men in therapy: The challenge of change (pp. 108–127). New York: The Guilford Press.
• Pasick, Robert S. (1992). Staying awake: The importance of friendship. In Awakening from the deep sleep: A powerful guide for courageous men (pp. 222–244). San Francisco, CA: HarperSanFrancisco (A division of HarperCollins, Publishers).
• Wrangham, R. & Peterson, D. (1996). Demonic Males: Apes and the Origins of Human Violence. London: Bloomsbury Publishing.
• Lionel Tiger, Men in Groups, Random House 1969; Transaction, 2004
• Potvin, John. (2008) Material and Visual Cultures Beyond Male Bonding, 1870–1914. Hampshire England, Ashgate Publishing Limited

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