In this paper, the concept of Gender Based Violence (GBV) is exemplified by different constellations of violence involving men acting either as perpetrators or as victims. GBV is usually defined in a broad way and can cover the main field of violence between the genders (men as perpetrators, women as victims) as well as other constellations of perpetrators and victims, e.g. violence between men. The scope of the concept of GBV is, however, seldom used in its entirety. Based on a broad definition of GBV, three topics are discussed with the intention of emphasizing the relevance of an extended and gendered perspective on men and violence: First, we will be looking at the topic of violence in public spaces being committed by men against other men as a form of Gender Based Violence, with the potential of motivating men for change and for taking a stand against a distorted male socialization. The second topic is violence in heterosexual partnerships, which has become a subject of public debate, where the insistence on the gender symmetry of domestic violence has served as an anti-feminist argument in the ideological discourse, bringing new challenges to public communication. The third area of focus is the sexual abuse of boys, which has often been overlooked because of the relation between male socialization and a taboo form of violence that makes disclosure processes difficult. Thinking about such constellations of violence can improve not only our theory and concepts, but the victim support structures and intervention programs for perpetrators of violence as well.
