Until now, adult crying has received relatively little interest from investigators, whereas in the popular media there are many strong claims about crying (e.g., crying brings relief) of which the scientific basis is not clear. In this review, we provide an overview of the current state of the scientific literature with respect to crying. We identify gaps in knowledge and propose questions for future research. The following topics receive special attention: Ontogenetic development, antecedents, individual and gender differences, and the intra- (...) and interindividual effects of crying. We conclude that the study of crying may help us obtain better insight into human nature, that is, not only our emotional, but also social, and moral functioning. (shrink)

ABSTRACTCrying is often considered to be a positive experience that benefits the crier, yet there is little empirical evidence to support this. Indeed, it seems that people hold a range of appraisals about their crying, and these are likely to influence the effects of crying on their emotional state. This paper reports on the development and psychometric validation of the Beliefs about Crying Scale, a new measure assessing beliefs about whether crying leads to positive or negative emotional outcomes in individual (...) and interpersonal contexts. Using 40 preliminary items drawn from a qualitative study, an exploratory factor analysis with 202 participants yielded three subscales: Helpful Beliefs, Unhelpful-Individual Beliefs, and Unhelpful-Social Beliefs, explaining 60% of the variance in the data. Confirmatory factor analysis on the 14-item scale with 210 participants showed a good fit to the three factors. The subscales showed differential... (shrink)

Educators continue to struggle with how masculinities are performed and regulated in spaces of learning. In a time of rapid social change, there is a renewed impetus for gender justice reform in schooling, though these approaches themselves remain a shifting picture. Adding a new layer of complexity, we are now witness to educational policy recommendations around surveillance which are designed to counteract boys’ and young men’s vulnerabilities to be radicalised into the misogynies of the ‘manosphere’. These recommendations exist despite limited (...) research and significant gaps in our understanding regarding both the manosphere as well as the emotional lives of young men. The article intentionally shifts the conversation from reactive surveillance in schools to educative gender justice approaches. We focus, in particular, on the significance of ‘pedagogic discomfort’ in terms of fostering gender transformative dialogue which is critical of ideas associated with the manosphere. We consider how a constructive dialogue might be fostered with a particular focus on pedagogies that recognise the emotional intensities of gender justice work. (shrink)