How do African American men define health and what implications do these definitions have for health practices?

Health professionals tend to operate from the premise that African American men define their health by information about clinical metrics and determinants similar to those used by health professionals.  Thus, communication between patients and providers often focuses on helping African American men understand if their health is “good” or “bad” based on biological and physiological processes. While understanding these factors is important, definitions of health among African American men maybe more nuanced and conceptualizations of health may be more broad and influenced by their perception of what it means to be a man.  Thus, the current study aims to understand how African American men define health and uncover the nuanced relationship between masculinity and health behavior. Seven focus groups, with a total of 73 African American male participants were conducted. The focus group transcriptions were analyzed using an inductive strategy via which themes emerged and were later categorized. Results indicate that participants primarily defined health as healthy behaviors, ability to fulfill certain roles and longevity. Participants reported that "being a man" included having the ability to handle responsibilities, be disciplined, and stand up for what you believe in while still understanding that actions can affect family and community.  Based on these findings, providers should ground their healthcare messaging via a framework that highlights the importance of self-reliance and individual agency. However, this must be nested in an understanding of the intertwined nature of self, family and community that many participants discussed in this study. This could take the shape of aiding in self-empowerment, emphasizing the importance of self-reliance in addition to partnering with important family members and community based-organizations to aid in health promotion. Additionally, efforts to relieve the stress caused by the pressure felt by participants related to the responsibility they feel to themselves, their families and communities are needed.