“If the man takes care of his own health, it will seem contradictory to the work”: the relation between masculinities and health care for young men in vocational training

Abstract

This study sought to understand how young men in vocational training, relate masculinities and health care within the work environment. Through a qualitative approach, individual interviews were conducted with 27 young men, aged from 17 to 19 years, all enrolled in technical courses, connected to the program Jovem Aprendiz of a technical school located in Recife, PE. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and subjected to thematic content analysis. The Atlas.ti software was used to assist in the organization of the material produced. The analysis resulted in two thematic categories: “Difficulties to promote/prevent health care” and “Possibilities of promotion/prevention of health care”. In the first category, the interviewees said that routine tasks, the fact that men prioritize other activities, and the way health care services are organized make it difficult for young male workers to be involved in health care actions. They also mentioned the idea that adolescents have difficulties to seek health care promotion and prevention actions. In the second category, the participants mentioned that health care occurs through the maintenance of healthy habits or support provided by workplaces. The results showed different forms of relating masculinities and health care, with emphasis on the reproduction of values that reinforce this relationship based on hegemonic models of masculinity. Thus, we observed that there is need for health education actions to deconstruct stereotypes and strengthen the importance of the prevention and promotion of health care among young men.