Young men and young masculinities: A transnational dialogue

This chapter is not strictly an interview, although, because we do ask one another questions and exchange views, it can read that way. We regard it as a dialogue between us, Jeff Hearn and Kopano Ratele, constituted from different texts and conversations, on several topics of mutual interest. Young men and masculinities are at the centre of the chapter, but our dialogue opens onto a wider set of interests relevant to the present book. The dialogue is grounded in a history of working together on transnational, Global North-South, collaborative projects which have included research, and co-editing a journal special issue and a book on engaging youth in activism. While our dialogue revolves around some of the key questions on young men and welfare, the broader aim also signals the use of conversation as a method in the making of personal, political, and intellectual identities. We begin with where our interests began, a history of sorts, before turning to where we are coming from, personally, politically, academically, then onto focusing on young men and masculinities, before discussing social welfare, social policy, and lifecourse as approaches to men, boys, and masculinities. We then engage on talking from and across our locations in the Global North and South. In the last two sections of the chapter, our conversation tackles current trends, key challenges, and future scenarios.