Masculine Norm Adherence Among Australian Men: Latent Structure of the CMNI-22 and Its Links With Mental Health Outcomes.
Mancini V, Brett J, et al. • Health promotion journal of Australia : official journal of Australian Association of Health Promotion Professionals • 2026
The CMNI-22 is best understood as a multidimensional measure containing 11 factors, and using a multidimensional conceptualisation instead of a unidimensional (single total score) approach explains larger proportions of variance in mental health outcomes including depression, anxiety, and psychological wellbeing.
Key Findings
Results
Factor analyses revealed that the CMNI-22 is best understood as a multidimensional measure containing 11 factors rather than a single unidimensional score.
The CMNI-22 has previously been treated as both unidimensional (single overall score) and multidimensional (11-factor) assessment.
The study investigated the latent factor structure using data from more than 14,000 Australian men from the Ten to Men Study.
Both unidimensional and multidimensional factor analytic approaches were compared.
The 11-factor multidimensional structure was identified as the optimal way to use CMNI-22 data.
Results
The 11 dimensions of the CMNI-22 often report better internal reliability than the total score.
Individual subscale dimensions demonstrated superior internal reliability compared to the single composite total score.
This finding supports prioritising subscale scores over the unidimensional total score in research applications.
The sample included more than 14,000 Australian men participating in the Ten to Men Study.
Results
The multidimensional conceptualisation of the CMNI-22 explains larger proportions of variance in mental health outcomes compared to the unidimensional approach.
Mental health outcomes examined included depression, anxiety, and psychological wellbeing.
The multidimensional approach demonstrated superior predictive utility over time compared to the unidimensional approach.
Different specific dimensions showed different associations with specific mental health outcomes.
The longitudinal design allowed comparison of utility in predicting men's wellbeing over time.
Conclusions
The study found that using a single total score from the CMNI-22 is not advisable for research or clinical screening purposes.
Collapsing the 11 dimensions into a single total score obscures differential associations between specific masculine norms and mental health outcomes.
Scholars and policymakers utilising the Ten to Men dataset or the CMNI-22 are advised to use the multidimensional conceptualisation.
The authors conclude: 'It is not advisable to use a single total score.'
The CMNI-22 is described as providing 'a brief, but reliable, multidimensional assessment of masculine norms' when more comprehensive screening assessments are not possible.
Background
Masculine norm adherence was assessed in the Ten to Men Study using the CMNI-22 in a sample of more than 14,000 Australian men.
The Ten to Men Study is an Australian national study of men's health.
The CMNI-22 is the 22-item version of the Conformity to Masculine Norms Inventory.
The large national sample provided sufficient power to investigate the latent factor structure of the instrument.
Interest in the role of masculine norms in Australia prompted inclusion of the CMNI-22 in this large longitudinal study.
What This Means
This research suggests that the way masculine norms are measured in one of Australia's largest men's health studies matters significantly for understanding the links between masculinity and mental health. The study analysed data from more than 14,000 Australian men who completed the CMNI-22, a 22-item questionnaire measuring how closely men conform to traditional masculine norms such as self-reliance, emotional control, and risk-taking. The researchers tested whether it is better to use a single overall score from this questionnaire or to look at 11 separate dimensions individually, and found that the 11-dimension approach is clearly superior.
The multidimensional approach — treating each of the 11 aspects of masculine norms separately — explained more of the variation in men's mental health outcomes including depression, anxiety, and psychological wellbeing than simply using one combined total score. Different masculine norm dimensions were linked to mental health outcomes in different ways, meaning that lumping them all together into one score hides important information about which specific aspects of masculine conformity are most harmful or beneficial to men's mental health.
This research suggests that researchers and policymakers who use this dataset — or this questionnaire in other settings — should stop using a single total score and instead examine the 11 dimensions separately. In practical terms, this means public health efforts to improve men's mental health may benefit from targeting specific masculine norms rather than treating masculinity as a single undifferentiated concept. The CMNI-22 is described as a brief but reliable tool for this purpose when longer assessments are not practical.
Mancini V, Brett J, Chhabra J, Clarke J, Nevill T, Preece D, et al.. (2026). Masculine Norm Adherence Among Australian Men: Latent Structure of the CMNI-22 and Its Links With Mental Health Outcomes.. Health promotion journal of Australia : official journal of Australian Association of Health Promotion Professionals. https://doi.org/10.1002/hpja.70192