5 Ways to Start Difficult Conversations

Fancy reading up on it? Nothing in this campaign is guesswork. Here's what backs each part of it:

• A small, thoughtful gesture opens the door because disclosure tends to be reciprocal — one person's care and openness encourages the other person's, and it builds from there. → Catona & Greene, self-disclosure reciprocity (Jourard's foundational work), International Encyclopedia of Interpersonal Communication

• Side by side really does work better — over half of men say they're more comfortable discussing personal issues shoulder-to-shoulder than face-to-face, and most say they're more likely to open up while out and about doing something. → Greene King & Macmillan Cancer Support research

• A 2025 randomised pilot trial found walk-and-talk therapy for men with low mood produced bigger improvements in psychological distress, anxiety and stress than sitting indoors in a conventional session. → Dickmeyer et al., Clinical Psychology & Psychotherapy (2025)

• A laugh to start isn't just breaking the ice for the sake of it — affiliative humour is a well-studied way people build connection, ease social bonding and lower anxiety in a relationship. → Martin et al., Humor Styles Questionnaire research

• Lads really do tune out forced language — a 2024 study of men's own descriptions of mental distress found they communicate through their own metaphors, not clinical terms, and respond best when they're met in that language rather than a script. → McKenzie et al., "Understanding Men's Lived Experience of Mental Distress Through Metaphors," American Journal of Men's Health (2024)

• One deep chat isn't enough on its own — the same 2026 study we cited elsewhere found men's sense of having support erodes fastest exactly when they're struggling, which is why staying present and consistent matters more than a single conversation. → Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being (2026)