BeyondBlue: Men's Sheds in Australia: Effects on Physical Health and Mental Wellbeing

"Men's Sheds... are all thought to offer social, emotional and other benefits to men who participate in them..."

The evaluation identifies, through qualitative and quantitative means to what degree Men’s Sheds: 

• help men regain a sense of purpose in life
• enhance self-esteem
• decrease social isolation
• facilitate friendship and companionship
• provide an environment conducive to learning
• improve physical health
• increase awareness of depression and anxiety
• reduce stigma of depression and anxiety
• increase help-seeking for depression and anxiety
• increase help-seeking for other health issues.

Outcomes

• help men regain a sense of purpose in life
• enhance self-esteem
• decrease social isolation
• facilitate friendship and companionship
• provide an environment conducive to men’s learning. 

At a broader level, men’s participation in men’s sheds is thought to have positive effects for partners, families and communities. 

The aim of the research was to determine the effect of involvement in a Men’s Shed on the lives of its members and determine to what degree Men’s Sheds enhance their health and wellbeing across the number of areas mentioned above.

The research highlighted a number of health benefits for ‘shedders’ (i.e. Men who are members of a shed) compared to ‘non-shedders’. Shedders scored higher on areas such as: 

• physical functioning and health
• general health
• energy levels 

For many shedders, membership comes about following a significant life change such as retirement or loss of a spouse. Through this membership, men clearly demonstrated a renewed sense of purpose and enhanced self-esteem through developing social connections with other men. 

Shedders also demonstrated an improvement in awareness of mental health issues like depression and anxiety through shed membership.