International Social Science Journal (Chinese Edition)

No.1, 2024

Promotion, Resistance, and Crossroads: An International Comparative Study of Masculinity and Male Contraception

(Abstract)

Wang Xiangxian

The use of safe and effective long-term contraception after the ideal number of children has been born is a common need of the people and the government. Vasectomy, as the most reliable form of permanent contraception, is heavily influenced by masculinity and family planning. In Canada, New Zealand, Britain, Australia and the US, male sterilization has become a new element of masculinity based on the development of male contraception since the end of the 18th century. The development of male sterilization and masculinity has promoted gender equality and strengthened male power. The Indian government’s compulsory family planning in the 60s and 70s of the 20th century strengthened the mutual resistance between patriarchal masculinity and male sterilization, resulting in the ups and downs of male sterilization in India. In South Korea, a combination of a relatively modest family planning campaign and other factors that have contributed to the integration of male sterilization into masculinity, could both promote gender equality and enhance male empowerment.