Discrimination against male children

Psychologists and educators are increasingly acknowledging that, because of the way boys are parented and educated, combined with biology and an overlay of popular culture, male children do not fully develop their capacity for emotional depth and complexity. As a result, they are ill equipped to cope with the emotional upheavals of adolescence, they are unable to develop healthy adult relationships, and, in some cases, they are incapable of surviving at all.

Male babies tend to be less healthy than females, and they die in greater numbers in infancy. Boys are more likely than girls to be diagnosed with learning disabilities, to be disciplined, to be given medication for hyper-activity or attention deficiency. Adolescent boys commit more crimes than adolescent girls do, are more likely to be diagnosed as schizophrenic or autistic, and kill themselves 5 times more often than girls do. Adult males are more likely to be imprisoned, to abandon their families, and to become both perpetrators and victims of violent crime.

While girls have received increasing amounts of attention from researchers and educators, and grow up with ever more options and opportunities, boys are feeling the pressure of increased competition, limited expectations, societal scorn and inadequate role models.