This long but useful article takes a look at the situation of gender issues in mental health. It seems, based on the research, that men and women tend to suffer from most of the same illnesses, with a few marked exceptions -- women are more likely to experience internalizing disorders (withdrawal, anxiety, depression), but men are more likely to experience externalizing disorders (sensation-seeking, aggressiveness, conduct disorder).
Some have attributed these differences to an under-responsive central reward system (externalizing) or to an over-responsive central inhibition system (internalizing). Both of these can be comorbid with problems in the vagal nerve function in modulating emotion.
I'm only posting the "meat" of the article here, so for a full look at how gender is defined and the history of gender studies in psychology, please go to the site.
Gender Issues in Mental Health
Women’s issues
Typical stressors
Women are often expected to occupy a number of roles at the same time: wife, mother, homemaker, employee, or caregiver to an elderly parent. Meeting the demands of so many roles simultaneously leads to stressful situations in which choices must be prioritized. Women are often forced to choose whether to pursue or further a career versus whether to devote more time to home and family.
Many women prefer to work outside the home because it gives them a greater sense of life satisfaction. For other women, such as those who run single-parent households, employment is not an option—it is a necessity. Compared with men, women are frequently given jobs with less autonomy or creativity, which decreases their level of job satisfaction. Women may also have more difficultly being accepted in the workplace because of hierarchical structures preferring men. Documentation repeatedly shows that women’s salaries are lower than those of men in comparable positions; women tend to be paid less even when performing the same job as a man.
When women do choose or are required to work outside the home, they continue to perform the bulk of household duties as well. Sarah Rosenfield reported that compared to men, women perform 66% more of the domestic work, sleep one-half hour less per night, and perform an extra month of work each year. Needless to say, increased workloads and decreased attention to rest and relaxation are stressful and pose obstacles to women’s mental health.
Divorce results in more severe consequences for women who choose or are able to stay home in deference to child-rearing. Such women depend on marriage for financial security. Such domestic skills as childcare and housecleaning are not highly valued by society, and thus are poorly compensated in terms of money. Women who have never been employed and then experience divorce often have few options for securing adequate income.
Although women’s ability to form meaningful relationships is a buffer against stress, it can also be a source of stress. Caring about another person can be stressful when that person is not doing well physically or emotionally. Many families take for granted that the female members will care for elderly parents who are no longer self-sufficient. As a result, many women in their forties or fifties are caught between the needs of their college-age offspring and the needs of dependent parents or parents-in-law. Interpersonal conflicts resulting from these heavy burdens may cause stress or lower self-esteem. Women may also view unsuccessful relationships as representing failure on their part to fulfill traditional feminine qualities such as nurturance, warmth, and empathy.
Additional sources of stress common to women include victimization, assertiveness, and physical unattractiveness. Victimization is a constant concern due to the power differential between men and women. Assertiveness may be stressful for women who have had little experience in competitive situations. Physical unattractiveness may cause some women who adhere to unrealistic standards of feminine beauty to experience shame, or place them at risk for developing eating disorders. Women considered unattractive may also suffer discrimination in the workplace or in admission to higher education. In addition, the double standard of aging in contemporary society means that all women will eventually have to cope with the stigma of unattractiveness simply through growing older.
Typical coping strategies
Studies suggest that women typically react to stress by seeking social support, expressing feelings, or using distraction. These strategies might include praying, worrying, venting, getting advice, or engaging in behaviors that are not related to the problem at all (including such antisocial behaviors as drinking alcohol). Seeking social support and distraction are considered avoidant coping strategies because they do not focus on solving or overcoming a problem, only on alleviating the stress associated with the problem. Research is inconclusive regarding whether men or women are more likely to use problem-solving, which is considered an active coping strategy.
Typical patterns of psychopathology
Women are more likely than men to experience internalizing disorders. Primary symptoms of internalizing disorders involve negative inner emotions as opposed to outward negative behavior. Depression (both mild and severe) and anxiety (generalized or “free-floating” anxiety, phobias, and panic attacks) are internalizing disorders common to women. Symptoms include sadness; a sense of loss, helplessness, or hopelessness; doubt about one’s ability to handle problems; high levels of worry or nervousness; poor self-esteem; guilt, self-reproach, and self-blame; decreased energy, motivation, interest in life, or concentration; and problems with sleep or appetite.
Men’s issues
Typical stressors
Situations that typically produce stress for men are those which challenge their self-identity and cause them to feel inadequate. If their identity closely matches a traditional male role, they will experience stress in situations requiring subordination to women or emotional expressiveness. They will also experience stress if they feel they are not meeting expectations for superior physical strength, intellect, or sexual performance. Research indicates that men who strictly adhere to extreme gender roles are at higher risk for mental disorders.
Certain cultures are thought to adhere more strictly to traditional male gender roles. In a study by Jose Abreu and colleagues, Latino men were identified as adopting the most exaggerated form of masculinity, followed by European Americans, and then African Americans. The Latino image of masculinity is often referred to as machismo and includes such qualities as concern for personal honor, virility, physical strength, heavy drinking, toughness, aggression, risk-taking, authoritarianism, and self-centeredness. African American males are also thought to have a unique image of masculinity; however, Abreu’s study showed that African Americans are more egalitarian in terms of gender roles than European Americans.
Typical coping strategies
Men typically respond to stress by putting on a tough image, keeping their feelings inside, releasing stress through such activities as sports, actively attempting to solve the problem, denying the problem, abusing drugs or alcohol, or otherwise attempting to control the problem. As stated previously, research is inconclusive regarding whether males or females use problem-solving strategies more often. This type of coping strategy, however, has more frequently been attributed to males. Problem-solving is seen as an active coping strategy, which is more effective than such avoidant strategies as denial, abuse of drugs or alcohol, or refusing to talk about problems.
Typical patterns of psychopathology
Men are more likely than women to experience externalizing disorders. Externalizing disorders are characterized by symptoms involving negative outward behavior as opposed to internal negative emotions. Such externalizing disorders as substance abuse (both drugs and alcohol) and antisocial behavior (such as anger, hostility, aggression, violence, stealing, etc.) are common to men. Substance abuse results in such negative physical and social consequences as hallucinations, blackouts, physical dependency, job loss, divorce, arrests, organ and brain damage, and financial debt. Antisocial behavior impairs interpersonal relationships and can also result in negative consequences in other areas of life, such as runins with the criminal justice system.
Men are not exempt from such internalizing disorders as anxiety and depression. In fact, one study found that high levels of masculinity appear to be related to depression in males. Some researchers feel that men’s abuse of substances could be considered the male version of depression. Because male gender roles discourage admitting vulnerability, men may resort to substance abuse as a way of covering their feelings.
Men who adhere to rigid gender roles are also at a disadvantage in interpersonal relationships, especially intimate relationships. They may avoid emotional expressiveness, or may behave in domineering and hostile ways. These behaviors increase their risk of social isolation, disconnection from nurturance, and participation in unhealthy relationships.
Mental health
Research indicates that, overall, neither males nor females are at greater risk for developing mental disorders as such. Being male or female may indicate susceptibility to certain types of disorders, however. Neither masculinity nor femininity is uniformly positive; both gender identifications have strengths and weaknesses. For example, femininity appears to be protective against antisocial behaviors and substance abuse, but is associated with high levels of avoidant coping strategies and low levels of achievement. Masculinity appears to be protective against depression, but is high in antisocial behavior and substance abuse.
Information about gender roles has implications for treatment. Women may not seek treatment because of lack of such resources as money, transportation, or time away from childcare duties. A treatment center sensitive to women’s issues should seek to provide these resources in order to facilitate access to treatment. Men, on the other hand, may not seek treatment because it is incongruent with their image of masculinity. Therapists may need to offer men less threatening forms of treatment, such as those that focus on cognitive problem-solving rather than on emotions.
The focus of therapy may differ according to one’s gender issues. Therapists should recognize the potential for shame and defensiveness when exploring gender norms. Externalizing behaviors may point to underlying hidden shame. For women, the importance placed on various roles in their lives and how closely those roles are tied to their self-identity is relevant. Men may be encouraged to connect to the spiritual aspects of their being and to consider less stringent views of masculinity. Therapists should also consider the associated influences of generation, culture, class, occupation, and educational level when exploring gender role issues.
Mental health is best achieved by maintaining a balance between masculine and feminine qualities. Taking either set of qualities to an extreme and to the exclusion of the other is detrimental. A non-traditional gender role orientation would combine the best of both genders: a social focus (reciprocally supportive relationships and a balance between interests of self and others) and active coping strategies.
Flexibility in using coping strategies is also important. Active, problem-focused coping strategies help to change the situation that is causing the problem. Avoidant or emotion-focused coping strategies manage or reduce emotional distress. Avoidant and emotion-focused strategies may be helpful for the immediate crisis, but should be used in combination with more active strategies for complete problem resolution.
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