The Aussie bloke

October 2005

Sociologist Dr Andrew Singleton asks whether the traditional Aussie bloke has disappeared -- or is he just hard to spot behind the optimistic rhetoric of social commentators?

Photography: Melissa Di Ciero

Is the old-fashioned Aussie bloke an endangered species? You know, the fella clutching the beer at the barbie, gut hanging over his shorts, earning an honest 9 to 5 living, unfussed about whether he had spent quality time with his kids, blissfully unaware that his psychological wellbeing may need attention.

Popular media often gives the impression that several new male sub-species have evolved in these post-modern and liberated times, rendering the traditional bloke a relic.

We have the 'metrosexual' -- hairless and tanned, swanning from inner-city bar to waterfront apartment on his shiny Vespa. The 'new lad' -- a self-employed tradesman who reads Ralph magazine and whose earning power in the new economy is signified by his metallic-blue, mud-free Holden SS ute. And finally, the 'new father' -- up to his elbows in baby poo, vomit rag tossed over one shoulder as he vacuums the house for his working wife.

Beyond these facile media stereotypes, however, social circumstances over the past two decades have spawned the earnest belief that men are changing, and for the better.

Social researcher Hugh Mackay recently wrote about the existence of the 'new bloke', who is "comfortable both with his masculinity ... and with the new meanings of female liberation". A recent article in The Age carried the sub-head: "From delivery room to daily grind, the modern dad is more than just a breadwinner". In the mid-1990s, psychologist Steve Biddulph's book Manhood: An Action Plan for Changing Men's Lives, which offers a solution to the masculinity crisis, became a best-seller.

Despite this widespread optimism and myth-making, a careful reading of the evidence suggests the elements that have traditionally defined manhood -- breadwinning, fatherhood, men's assumption of superiority over women -- remain largely unaltered.

There are three pieces of evidence that support this notion.

Rather than scaling back their professional commitments to spend more time with family, Australian men apparently care about work more than ever before. Recent figures show Australians now put in the second-longest working hours among OECD nations. The unprecedented and extraordinary level of household debt creates a powerful imperative for men to stay at their desks, workbenches or sales meeting.

Contemporary fathers might, in theory, be more interested in quality time with the kids. But in practice, this idyllic picture crumbles. Australian men are not actually spending much time in their children's company. A recent report by the Australia Institute found 30 per cent of Melbourne fathers spent more time commuting each week than they did with their children. US research tells us that, on average, a man actually increases his annual hours of paid, outside work by 38 hours per year after the birth of a child.

Equality between the sexes? Even with equal opportunity legislation, men on average still earn more than women for performing the same kind of work.

Evidence of the existence of the so-called 'new man' is usually anecdotal, or based on an optimistic reading of research, such as the finding that men now spend one hour more per week on housework than they did 30 years ago.

All this means we should treat the 'changing man' imagery with suspicion, for this new-age creature seems to be more a product of wishful thinking than a reality. Though some progress has been made, the traditional Aussie male, far from being extinct, may in fact merely have disguised himself in the sheep's clothing provided by the notion of 'changed masculinity'.

Dr Andrew Singleton is a sociology lecturer in the School of Political and Social Inquiry at Monash.