Ever since the Boy Scouts were created in 1910, the national organization has been seen by many as the answer to making boys into men, says UC Davis masculinity scholar Jay Mechling.

Nearly 100 years later, Scouts are center stage in the larger culture wars over what kinds of boys it takes and men it makes, says Mechling, author of the new book "On My Honor: Boy Scouts and the Making of American Youth."

Despite the fierce controversies over Boy Scouts denying atheists and gays admission, American studies professor Mechling maintains that the national policies have little to do with real boys' experiences in their own troop.

"A basic premise of this book is that the national office of the Boy Scouts of America does not represent the experience of 'being a Boy Scout,'" Mechling says.

In fact, Mechling argues there are few studies on how boys create normal, everyday lives.

He has spent the last 25 years studying a Boy Scout Troop in Northern California to understand how the organization channels boys into socially constructive directions.

The book explores Mechling's observations while camping in the Sierra with boys and their leaders over the years. During the many rites and activities, Mechling shows how adults carry out the modeling of masculinity as the center of the Boy Scout mission.

Mechling, a nationally renowned scholar in American studies and folklore, is also an Eagle Scout.