The Price of Grit: Reimagining Oilfield Masculinities, Health, and Social Work’s Role in a Just Transition

Background & Purpose: Oilfield workers—predominantly working-class men—have powered global economies while embodying culturally ingrained mythologies of grit, stoicism, and heroic self-sacrifice (Filteau, 2014; Paulson & Boose, 2019). These masculinities, shaped by high-risk labor and economic precarity, are marked by both strength and suffering. Yet they remain underexamined in social work scholarship despite being central to environmental transitions, labor justice, and occupational health. This study reimagines oilfield masculinities through a social work lens—analyzing their health burdens, lived mythologies, and emotional toll—and asks how the profession can support these men not as obstacles, but as collaborators in building just, inclusive energy futures.

Methods: A multi-method qualitative design was employed, comprising a scoping literature review and a grounded theory study. The scoping review analyzed 5,357 sources, with 18 meeting inclusion criteria—none focused on U.S. offshore masculinities. To build grounded insight, 24 semi-structured interviews (60–90 minutes) were conducted with current and former oilfield workers across the Gulf of Mexico. Interviews were transcribed, coded using open, axial, and selective strategies in ATLAS.ti, and analyzed via constructivist grounded theory (Charmaz, 2006). Analytical rigor was ensured through dual coding, member-checking, peer debriefing, and reflexive memoing (Lincoln & Guba, 1985; Nowell et al., 2017).

Results: Five “myths” or meta-narratives emerged as both identity anchors and sources of health risk: the Martyr Provider, who measures love by sacrifice; the Invisible Backbone, whose essential labor remains unseen; the Lone Cowboy, who resists vulnerability at great personal cost; the Benevolent Trap, whose loyalty to oil erases self-worth; and the Wounded Warrior, who bears pain in silence. These myths were linked to significant health burdens: severe injuries (OSHA, 2017–2024), toxic exposures (Yadav et al., 2021; Hussain, 2021), musculoskeletal disorders (Kalteh et al., 2017), and high cardiovascular risk (Wang et al., 2022). Workers described long-term psychological distress—chronic stress, moral injury, and isolation—compounded by shame, stigma, and being vilified in climate narratives. Participants described untreated pain, compulsive overwork, substance use, and broken relationships as “part of the job,” while also expressing grief at being unseen or scapegoated in climate policy. Despite these struggles, many voiced a desire to transition into renewable energy—if new roles preserved their purpose, honor, and community ties.

Conclusions & Implications : This study surfaces urgent opportunities for social work to lead transformative change. The profession must reimagine oilfield masculinities not as impediments to climate justice, but as complex identities shaped by survival, care, and loyalty. Social workers are uniquely positioned to create culturally responsive interventions that support physical and emotional healing; facilitate masculine identity shifts toward stewardship, community care, and legacy; and advocate for inclusive climate and labor policies that honor lived experience. It is critical that social workers help reframe these internalized myths—rooted in sacrifice and silence—into models of caring masculinity that emphasize mutual support, emotional openness, and interdependence. By challenging harmful gender scripts and offering alternative narratives, social work can foster new legacies of masculinity that heal both people and planet.