Every day in the year 2016, more than two Australian men aged over 50 took their own lives. Every day in the year 2016, more than one Australian man aged over 60 took his own life (Mindframe 2017). Further, men over 70 have the highest suicide rate in the world (Ritchie et al. 2020).
Why do we in Australia, as a first-world nation and a middle global power, ignore these devastating ‘silent statistics’, these Lost Boys? Indeed, why does the world perpetuate the silence around these statistics? I still have not uncovered the definitive answer to this. What I have uncovered is a social movement that seeks to go beyond the simplistic and somewhat insulting media discussions around ageing. I have discovered that the statistics, alarming as they are, have produced a mobilising force for three generations of older men to ask: “So what are we going to do about it?”
Embedded within the premise of this book are the dichotomous concepts of ‘lost’ and ‘found’. The men described within these pages were initially psychologically displaced rendering them physically and emotionally lost, unable to find their way through life. As a result, they became marginalised within their communities with no pathway back to inclusion. They despaired of ever feeling fulfilment or purpose. For some, their careers ceased (either voluntarily or involuntarily); others may have experienced a life-altering personal challenge such as divorce, or severe partner ill health or loss. The absence of the fundamental contributive needs of self-determination, self-esteem and self-efficacy obstructed their ability to build meaningful relationships both within and without their immediate family group. However, as they mobilised, these men increasingly found like-minded peers in cohort groups formed by them and exclusively for them. In doing so, they collectively built sustainable, purposeful futures not only for themselves individually and as a contemporary demographic of older men but also for their sons who follow.
This book is based on my PhD research which examined the effectiveness of two prominent male-centric organisations located in regional Queensland, Australia (Mulligan 2018). Three TOMNET (The Older Men’s Network Inc) affiliations and ten regional Men’s Sheds were targeted for data collection. Only organisations with a male-only membership were studied.
Data gathering for this multi-site case study was composed of three phases: an initial 5-point paper-based Likert scale survey (Strongly Agree, Agree, Neither Agree nor Disagree, Disagree, Strongly Disagree) delivered to each volunteer individual, followed by self-selected semi-structured interviews and focus groups. A fieldwork journal was also utilised. Each participant was anonymised with a pseudonym.
TOMNET (tomnet.org.au) is an organisation that was established in a regional city in South East Queensland, Australia, in 2001 by a group of older men who were alarmed at the growing number of their peers who were committing suicide, particularly those men in rural and remote areas. TOMNET’s motto is “reconnecting older men” (tomnet.org.au/). The website states that TOMNET “provides older men with opportunities for mateship, the chance to re-connect with the community and cope positively with life after loss. TOMNET is a non-religious and non-party political organisation, and all men are considered equal” (tomnet.org.au). TOMNET stresses that the heart of the organisation lies in its philosophy of older men helping older men. There are over 300 members of the main city group plus affiliated rural groups. Data was gathered from the TOMNET headquarters situated in the city and two rural affiliate associations.
Contemporary Men’s Sheds are communal spaces where members of a community gather to work on projects that traditionally would have been constructed in a shed in the backyard. The Australian Men’s Shed Association (AMSA) (mensshed.org) was established in 2007 as a representative body for Men’s Sheds nationally. There are over 1000 Sheds in Australia (Australian Government 2020). The motto of AMSA is: “Men don’t talk face to face[;] they talk shoulder to shoulder” (mensshed.org/about-amsa/what-is-amsa/).
Data was gathered from ten male-only Men’s Sheds. Even though each Shed is autonomous and reflects the community in which it was formed, AMSA broadly identified a Men’s Shed as follows:
…any community-based, non-profit, non-commercial organization that is accessible to all men and whose primary activity is the provision of a safe and friendly environment where men are able to work on meaningful projects at their own pace in their own time in the company of other men. A major objective is to advance the wellbeing and health of their male members. (mensshed.org/what-is-a-mens-shed/)
In this research, an older man is defined as one who is over 50 years of age. At the age of 50 in Australia, people are eligible to join seniors’ groups and organisations. Fifty is also perceived to be the entrance to the “third age” or the retirement phase of life (Cusack and Thompson 1999, p. xi). TOMNET classifies 50 as the age at which men are likely to encounter professional issues such as retrenchment, and so they may need the support of peers. Milligan et al. (2013) referred to this age as being the “target age” (p. 14) for Australian Men’s Sheds. Participants in this study were drawn from the over 50 years age range only, however generally Men’s Sheds cater for a wider membership age range (16 plus years).
Although this research was conducted in regional, rural and remote Australia, the participants in this study could be located anywhere in the world. Unfortunately, until now, their voices have been mostly silenced. The mental health issues of males over 50 are universal. This is borne out by the devastatingly inflated global suicide rate of older men and more particularly those in the 70 years plus age range.
This research is not about pitting one gender against another. As a woman aged over 60 who has been in paid and unpaid employment all of her adult life, I have both covertly and overtly experienced gender discrimination on many occasions, and still do to a certain extent. My research stance is grounded in a concern for equality for both genders. Despite historical and present gender biases, I embrace the future as a time when both genders can move forward as...