New research published in the journal Psychology of Men & Masculinities provides evidence that men who feel insecure about their masculinity are more likely to place a high value on having a large penis. The findings suggest that for some men, the penis serves as a symbol of status and dominance, and the desire for a larger one is partly driven by feelings of humiliation regarding failures to meet social expectations of manhood.
Men’s concerns regarding penis size are often treated as a source of amusement in popular culture. Despite the comedic treatment, these preoccupations can have serious negative consequences for men’s mental health, sexual satisfaction, and romantic relationships.
Previous observations by historians and scientists have suggested that the human penis functions as an organ of display intended to signal status to other men. The authors of the current study sought to empirically test the psychological mechanisms underlying this phenomenon.
“For many years, I had noticed that men seemed to have an interest in penis size and to admire large penises. I found it curious that men seemed to have a lot more admiration for large penises than women do. I found research that suggested this is the case – men do have a greater value for penis size than women,” said study author Cindy Harmon-Jones, a senior lecturer at Western Sydney University.
“If the reason men value a large penis is not because big penises are desired by women, then what could account for it? Anecdotally, I observed that men who admired large penises seemed angry and hostile. But this was just a personal observation that needed to be tested empirically to see whether it was supported or not.”
“One of my co-authors (Eddie Harmon-Jones) subsequently found a passage in Jared Diamond’s book Why is sex fun? where Diamond proposed that a large penis might serve as a display signal of masculinity. That was interesting but also needed to be tested empirically,” Harmon-Jones continued.
“That led me to symbolic self-completion theory. This theory, created by Robert Wicklund, proposed that when a person feels threatened in an important domain they will be motivated to display other symbols of success in that domain in an attempt to receive validation. For example, I had a previous paper where I found that academics who aren’t succeeding in publishing as many articles display more titles in their email signatures. ”
“Based on that theory, I thought that men who are feeling like they are not succeeding in the masculine role might value large penises more, as an alternate symbol of masculinity.”
The researchers conducted four separate studies to test this hypothesis. In Study 1, the team recruited 88 heterosexual men from the United States through an online platform. The participants ranged in age from 20 to 68 years.
Harmon-Jones and her colleagues developed a new assessment tool called the Penis Size Value Scale. This scale measured the extent to which participants believed that larger penises are superior or more important. Participants also completed the Masculine Gender Role Stress Scale. This measure assesses the stress a man anticipates feeling in situations where he might fail to live up to masculine ideals, such as physical inadequacy, emotional inexpressiveness, or subordination to women.
The results of the first study showed a positive correlation between masculine gender role stress and the value placed on a large penis. Men who reported higher stress about failing to meet masculine standards were more likely to believe that penis size is significant.
The researchers also measured traits such as dominance, anger, and aggression. The data indicated that men with higher levels of these traits also tended to value large penises more. There was no significant relationship between valuing a large penis and the frequency of sexual activity or pornography consumption. This suggests that the value is not simply a product of sexual behavior or exposure to adult media.
In Study 2, the researchers sought to replicate the initial findings with a larger sample to allow for more robust statistical analysis. They recruited 201 men from the United States. The procedure remained similar to the first study, with participants completing the Penis Size Value Scale and measures of masculine stress, aggression, and dominance. The researchers performed a multiple regression analysis to determine which factors uniquely predicted the value placed on penis size.
The findings from the second study confirmed the results of the first. There was a clear link between feeling threatened in the masculine role and valuing a large penis. When the researchers analyzed the independent contributions of the different variables, they found that masculine gender role stress remained a significant predictor even when statistically controlling for dominance and aggression.
This provides evidence that insecurity about one’s standing as a man is a primary driver of these beliefs, distinct from general competitiveness or aggressive tendencies. The study also found that valuing a large penis was associated with feeling shame about one’s own penis size and engaging in behaviors to try to enlarge it.
“A concern about penis size might be about more than just the penis,” Harmon-Jones told PsyPost. “It might have to do with a man’s concerns about masculinity more generally.”
For Study 3, the research team recruited 270 men and expanded the scope of their inquiry. They added a new subscale to their assessment tool to specifically measure the desire to possess a large penis, rather than just the abstract value placed on it. They also introduced a measure of humiliation to gauge specific emotional reactions to masculine threats. Additionally, the researchers included questions regarding political and religious views to explore broader social correlates.
The results revealed that both the importance of and the desire for a large penis were positively correlated with masculine gender role stress. The study also found that men who felt humiliated by the prospect of failing as a man reported a stronger desire for a large penis.
In terms of social attitudes, valuing a large penis was correlated with higher levels of religiosity and support for Donald Trump. However, statistical models suggested that the connection to political and religious views might be partially explained by the underlying masculine role stress. The strongest predictor for desiring a larger penis remained the feeling of insecurity regarding masculinity.
The final study moved from correlational observation to an experimental design to test for a causal relationship. The researchers recruited 204 men and randomly assigned them to one of two conditions. In the “threat” condition, participants wrote about memories where they failed to meet masculine standards. In the “no-threat” condition, participants wrote about times they succeeded in the masculine role. Following this writing task, the researchers measured the participants’ current feelings of humiliation and their desire for a large penis.
The manipulation check confirmed that men in the threat condition experienced higher levels of negative emotions, particularly humiliation. Assessing the impact on penis size attitudes, the researchers found that the threat manipulation led to an increase in the desire for a large penis.
A path analysis revealed an indirect effect. The situational threat to masculinity increased feelings of humiliation, and these elevated feelings of humiliation subsequently increased the desire for a large penis. This supports the idea that the emotional experience of humiliation is a key mechanism linking masculine insecurity to body image concerns.
“Regarding my hypotheses, I was most convinced by the results of Study 4, because it’s an experiment,” Harmon-Jones said. “The first three studies are correlational, which means that there could be many alternative explanations for the results. With the fourth study, I manipulated masculine role stress. The men in the role stress condition reported a greater value for large penises. This suggested that even momentary threats to masculinity can change how important men find large penises.”
There are limitations to this research that should be noted. The samples across all four studies consisted entirely of heterosexual men from the United States. It is possible that men from different cultural backgrounds or sexual orientations might respond differently to masculine threats.
The experimental manipulation in the fourth study produced relatively small effects, which is not uncommon in brief laboratory experiments but may differ in intensity from real-world experiences of emasculation. The measure of humiliation used in the studies grouped several negative emotions together, which may obscure the specific role of distinct emotional states.
“This is basic research on a fairly novel topic, so I wasn’t trying to establish the practical significance with these studies,” Harmon-Jones said. “Instead, I hope it will open up the topic and that future studies can explore the practical implications as well as related ideas. I’d encourage readers not to worry too much about effect sizes, because these can vary greatly depending on the strength of manipulations and the sensitivity of measures.”
The findings offer a new perspective on male body image issues. The research suggests that for many men, distress about penis size is deeply intertwined with broader anxieties about their adequacy as men. Clinicians and educators might find this information useful when addressing male body image concerns.
“These studies aren’t primarily about whether men are satisfied or dissatisfied with the size of their own penis,” Harmon-Jones noted. “They are about how threats to masculinity affect how men feel about penis size in general, that is, their feelings about the importance or value of large penises.”
The study implies that the popular trope of men seeking status symbols to compensate for physical insecurities may have a psychological basis, but the dynamic also works in reverse: men who feel their masculinity is threatened may fixate on physical symbols to restore their sense of self.
“I hope that my paper normalizes discussing men’s sexuality and body image including how they feel about their penises and penises in general,” Harmon-Jones said. “This is a topic that’s often a source of jokes and amusement, instead of being taken seriously. Attitudes toward penis size can have serious implications for men’s relationships and mental health.”
The study, “Men’s Value for a Large Penis Relates to Threatened Masculinity, Dominance, and Aggression: A Test of Symbolic Self-Completion Theory,” was authored by Cindy Harmon-Jones, Brandon J. Schmeichel, Elizabeth Summerell, and Eddie Harmon-Jones.
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