Routledge Handbook of Masculinities, Conflict, and Peacebuilding

"Given the state of the contemporary world which includes high levels of violence, declining peace negotiations and formal peace agreements, populist masculinist leadership, anti-feminist backlash and frequent displays of toxic masculinity, new empirical research and theoretical insights on masculinities in peace and conflict studies have been long overdue. The editors are some of the finest scholars of masculinity studies and they have curated this urgently needed handbook for posterity, bringing together contributors exploring a diverse range of geographies, locations, positionalities, voices and methodologies to understand masculinities as a dynamic and intersectional gender construct. This extraordinary handbook fills a very important gap and will be of great relevance not just to scholars and educators in gender, conflict, peace and development research but also to practitioners and activists."

Swati Parashar, Professor of Peace and Development, School of Global Studies, University of Gothenburg

"To produce a whole handbook specifically on masculinities, conflict and peacebuilding might seem, to some people, a very particular, focused and perhaps narrow venture. But here, now, is this new Handbook, with 34 chapters, from all over the world, showing in multiple ways the importance and urgency of theoretical, political, policy and personal work on men and masculinities in conflict and peacebuilding. With both broad overviews and located studies, this Handbook is a huge and indispensable resource for scholars, students, policy-makers, politicians, activists, peacebuilders and peacekeepers, and even and of course for the military, alike."

Jeff Hearn, Senior Professor, Human Geography, Örebro University, Sweden; Professor of Sociology, University of Huddersfield, UK; Professor Emeritus, Hanken School of Economics, Finland

"We have been grappling with "gender" since the 60's, questioning how we assume particular roles and why. This book is an exploration of the relation of masculine gender to structures of power and their institutions: physical, religious, political and military and the mutuality of creation. It brings out the complexities of expectations and whilst it doesn't answer all the questions, it takes us much closer to understanding how to make the changes to our binary narratives. A fascinating read."

Madeleine Reese, Former Secretary-General, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF)