Against toxic masculinity

It's just before 6 p.m. on a Tuesday evening in April at the University of Münster. A lecture hall on the ground floor is filling up with guests, while outside in the park a photo shoot with Mouhanad Khorchide is wrapping up. 

Khorchide, a professor, heads up the Center for Islamic Theology (ZIT), the first denominational Islamic theological university institution in Münster, founded in 2011. Tonight, Khorchide is delivering a lecture to mark the opening of an innovative research unit.

The focus of the new unit is masculinity; namely, a forensic examination of ideals of masculinity from a Muslim perspective, but also Catholic and Protestant perspectives. Khorchide notes that future research will focus in particular on masculinity's significance for young people with, and without, a migrant background. "What does it mean to be a man in a migrant context, in a Muslim context? That's a research gap that hardly anyone is addressing."

The new Centre for Critical, Interdisciplinary and Interreligious Masculinity Research—AKIIM for short—is based at the ZIT, where people have focussed on these issues since 2025. Their aim is to examine the role of men in different social contexts, with progressive masculinity, as seen in newer models of fatherhood, also under the lens.

According to Khorchide, who started the project, together with Catholic theologian David Koch, Münster wants to contribute to research on radicalisation and fundamentalism in view of the growing threat of Islamism and other forms of religious extremism.

"If you look at the radicalisation scene on the internet, for example, it's largely a male phenomenon. Behind it are certain destructive images of masculinity," explains Khorchide. Their aim is to incorporate critical masculinity research into Münster's continuing education program for imams and social workers, in order to facilitate outreach to mosque communities.

Interdisciplinary and interfaith

Masculinity research, which has been widespread in the US since the 1980s, is not exactly a new field in Germany. What is innovative about the Münster research project is its interdisciplinary and interreligious approach.

"We're not hiding in an ivory tower. We're not just conducting research on holy texts. We're also looking at what social work can tell us, and examining the insights of psychology and criminology," stresses Koch, the Catholic theologian. The aim, he adds, is to arrive at a better theology and a better discourse about God, one that may be helpful to everyone.

The fact that the research centre is based in Islamic theology and has an interfaith orientation is important; "Because religion can be both part of the problem and part of the solution," says Khorchide.

When fundamentalist members of the Catholic St Pius X fraternity demonstrate against women's right to self-determination, that's problematic. But religion can also be part of the solution when, for example, patriarchal ideas of masculinity in parts of the Islamic world can be refuted through Koranic interpretation.

Fikri Anıl Altıntaş, an author and journalist specialising in issues of masculinity, is on board with the project. One of his particular themes is the media portrayal of Muslim men in Germany: "There are no such things as Islamic images of masculinity per se, because Islam is, of course, always embedded in social contexts," he says. 

According to Altıntaş, there is plenty of research to show that the ways in which religion is expressed among Muslim youth can influence how gender roles manifest. If young Muslims grow up in a family and social environment where patriarchal ideas of masculinity dominate, and are modeled, they're likely to adopt such attitudes later in life. 

Toxic role models with multiple followers

Anyone who wants to conduct masculinity research from an Islamic theological perspective can't ignore controversial online influencers. Andrew Tate, an American who converted to Islam in 2022, preaches a toxic view of masculinity across several online platforms and is a role model for a large following of young men.

Many also look up to Russian-Muslim influencers, Islam Makhachev and Khabib Nurmagomedov, mixed martial artists, originally from Dagestan, who've accumulated a considerable following on social media channels during their sporting careers.

Both are proud Muslims who want to show the world what it is to be a true Muslim. They also enjoy being photographed (even being snapped alongside Donald Trump in 2024), while showcasing muscular bodies and belligerent expressions with maybe a Kalashnikov tucked under one arm.

It's not uncommon for masculinity influencers to also hold misogynistic views. "We can see that it pays off," says David Koch. "Even in politics it seems to be very successful, with the result that many men ask themselves why they should fight for equality."

"Politics is born of masculinity," says Fikri Anıl Altıntaş. "And masculinity is often used to perpetuate sexist stereotypes, which can, in turn, serve as a gateway to gender-based violence."

Makhachev and Nurmagomedov, the two influencers from Dagestan, represent a questionable image of masculinity, he points out. In their videos, they suggest invincibility, power, and wealth, qualities which apparently resonate with many.

But why?

"I think it's because many young men are very disoriented. They receive confusing messages about how they should be and they're desperately searching for role models, but can't find any," says Koch. "Those that they do find are very problematic role models, such as martial artists or influencers who openly express misogynistic views."

According to Altıntaş, the success of patriarchal and toxic notions of masculinity can also be explained by political and social conditions: "We are dealing with multiple social crises where a return to traditional masculinity supposedly offers security."

In Münster, there's a determination to counteract these dangerous developments. The aim is for research work to be incorporated into teaching materials for Islamic religious education, thereby reaching young Muslims in German schools.

In addition, they're looking to co-operate with the Federal Forum for Men, and the Network for Women's and Gender Studies NRW in the hopes that their research results can be translated into practice and widely disseminated to play a part in a process of real social change. 

This text is an edited translation of the German original. Translated from German by Louise East.