Lonely at the top: the high cost of men's success

Description

Men appear to enjoy many advantages in society-on average they make more money, have more power, and enjoy a greater degree of social freedom than women. But many men pay a high price for the pursuit of success and power. Taking family and friends for granted, men will often let relationships take a back seat to their professional ambitions, only to ultimately find themselves with few real friends they can rely on in hard times. As a result, they turn to affairs, alcohol, and other self-destructive behaviors. Sadly, millions of men suffer untreated depression. In this groundbreaking and provocative book, award-winning clinical psychologist Thomas Joiner makes an impassioned call for society to recognize the harmful effects that solitude can have on men. Drawing on original research done for the National Institute of Mental Health, he focuses on the particular situations that leave men rudderless. He offers advice on support systems that are most useful to men, and... SECTION I: THE PROBLEM * The Lonely Sex: Having No One Starts Out as Having Everything * SECTION II: THE CAUSES AND THE CONSEQUENCES * Causes: Becoming Spoiled * Causes: Don't Tread on Me--The Perils of Independence * Causes: Pursuing Money and Status, Reaping Isolation * Lonely at the Top * Consequences: Paths to Self-Destructive Behavior (Guns, Golf, NASCAR, Alcohol, Sex, and Divorce) * SECTION II: THE SOLUTIONS * Solutions: The Love of Nature and Nudging Men Back into Health * Solutions: Realistic Ways to Connect to Others * SECTION IV: CONCLUSION * On Sexism, Universality, and the Future * Notes * References * Index