While speaking with country music outlet All Country News, singer-songwriter Dax shared that “To Be A Man is the most important song I’ve ever written,” adding that he is “praying this song reaches those who need it.” In the 2023 country/rap hybrid, Dax sings about men who grapple with challenges unnoticed by society:

“Got so much weight that you’ve been
holding but won’t show any emotion
As a man it goes unspoken
That we can’t cry when life gets hard
Unconditional love’s for women, children, and dogs
We know that we just have to play our parts
And don’t nobody give a damn about our broken hearts.”

Soon after, a new version of the song featured a collaboration with country music star Darius Rucker, who, in his own verse, echoes Dax’s sentiment:

“I think about all the men out there who feel like I do now
Who are screaming on the inside but won’t ever make a sound.”

Popular music may seem an odd source from which to draw insights about timely social issues. But this song has starkly captured a phenomenon increasingly recognized by national scholars, elected officials, and the news media: the silent struggling of men across the nation.

National scholar Richard Reeves, in his book “Of Boys and Men: Why the Modern Male is Struggling, Why It Matters, and What to Do About It,” chronicles the decline of men in education, mental health, and the workforce. Sutherland Institute’s weekly Defending Ideas show launched ongoing discussions with experts on these topics in spring 2025. A 2023 Sutherland paper, The Utah Family Miracle, argued for a concerted effort to address these trends to support family stability in the state.

Deseret News coverage of a Sutherland task force on the well-being of men and boys, in partnership with the Utah Office of Families, has further elevated the issue in Utah.

The ability of men and boys to lead thriving lives in terms of health, vocation, and purpose continues to gain momentum as a priority issue for state and national leaders.

To amplify that momentum, Sutherland Institute and Y2 Analytics surveyed cohorts of men in Utah and across the nation to capture robust experiential data that further defines the nature and scope of this issue. Building on a June 2025 Sutherland Impact Analysis that briefly profiled initial topline nationwide findings, this paper provides
policymakers, scholars, and community leaders with greater depth to understand the challenges faced by some men in our communities.

We found that most men in Utah and throughout the nation report general satisfaction with their health, work, family life, faith connection, and sense of meaning. Broadly speaking, work, family, faith, and community connection are often protective influences that contribute to men’s internal sense of purpose and fulfillment. In other words, these civic institutions can serve as positive anchors that help men lead thriving lives. And for most men in Utah and throughout the United States, that holds true.

However, a significant portion of men struggle across these domains – all too often in ways that go unnoticed and unaddressed.

This silent, struggling subset of men ranges from 1 in 5 to 1 in 3 men across the nation, reporting poor marks when it comes to mental health issues, vocational prospects, or their sense of purpose. And though on average men in Utah do better than the national average on many metrics, the data uncovers unique challenges in the state worthy of understanding by elected and community leaders. Reviewing essential takeaways from this survey data in the three categories of health, vocation, and purpose illuminates the key problem areas.

When it comes to mental health, a number of men are isolated and experience stigma that discourages seeking help. Thirty percent of U.S. men and 15% of Utah men say they have no one to talk to about mental health. Twenty-two percent of men nationwide and 9% of men in Utah believe seeking professional help is a sign of weakness.

Though large majorities of both groups are employed, roughly 18% of men nationwide, and 13% of men in Utah, are dissatisfied with their current work situation

Nationwide, 17% of men do not believe their work is a significant source of meaning, while 18% of Utah men feel that way.

Self-reported feelings of purpose offer an important measure independently, and also have relationships with other areas in this survey, such as work, faith, family, and roles in the community. When asked about purpose broadly, 16% of men nationwide and 14% of men in Utah say they do not understand their purpose in life. Sixteen percent of men nationwide believe the things they do in life are not worthwhile, compared to 9% of Utah men. And thirty six percent of men across the country said they were struggling to understand their place in their community or wider society, compared to 24% of Utah men.

One of the starkest examples where Utah men actually report poorer measures than the national cohort is on perceptions of masculinity. Only 26% of Utah men believe there is a clear definition of what healthy masculinity looks like in society today, compared to 54% of men nationwide.

As the findings in this paper show, policymakers and community leaders who wish to help more men lead flourishing lives must begin by understanding the silent subset who struggle with mental health, vocational fulfillment, sense of purpose in life, and understanding of what healthy masculinity should be in the 21st century. Such an understanding provides an essential baseline for public discussions about how public policy reform and other community or societal interventions can make a positive impact.

The detailed findings below provide an essential starting point for such an effort.

Read the full PDF version of the report by clicking the button below.