There is an emotional & psychological crisis evident in American boys and men, which is finally being noticed primarily because of the increasing violence and poor academic performance of boys. Yet public discussion has not gone far enough in that it has so far only asked how to get boys functioning again. We argue that it is insufficient to be content with trying new ways to get boys to function again in what is clearly a dysfunctional system.

This crisis illuminates the need for a re-examination of several major components of our national culture. Huge changes in men’s work and family roles are reducing the time that men actually spend with boys. This is interrupting the essential transmission of male love, wisdom, and integrity from generation to generation. Boys may seem to be no different than the other Americans who are now swimming in excess consumerism, destructive media exposure, addictions, and the frenetic pace of activities. But boys are more vulnerable because the increasingly fractured male culture has left a vacuum of values and guidance, which allow these other influences full room to undermine their development of values and “character”.