Why is depression more common among women than among men

Whether men and women are fundamentally different or similar has been debated for more than a century. This review summarizes major theories designed to explain gender differences: evolutionary theories, cognitive social learning theory, sociocultural theory, and expectancy-value theory. The gender similarities hypothesis raises the possibility of theorizing gender similarities. Statistical methods for the analysis of gender differences and similarities are reviewed, including effect sizes, meta-analysis, taxometric analysis, and equivalence testing. Then, relying mainly on evidence from meta-analyses, gender differences are reviewed in cognitive performance (e.g., math performance), personality and social behaviors (e.g., temperament, emotions, aggression, and leadership), and psychological well-being. The evidence on gender differences in variance is summarized. The final sections explore applications of intersectionality and directions for future research.

Gender Similarities and Differences

Emotion expression is an important feature of healthy child development that has been found to show gender differences. However, there has been no empirical review of the literature on gender and facial, vocal, and behavioral expressions of different types of emotions in children. The present study constitutes a comprehensive meta-analytic review of gender differences and moderators of differences in emotion expression from infancy through adolescence. We analyzed 555 effect sizes from 166 studies with a total of 21,709 participants. Significant but very small gender differences were found overall, with girls showing more positive emotions (g –.08) and internalizing emotions (e.g., sadness, anxiety, sympathy; g –.10) than boys, and boys showing more externalizing emotions (e.g., anger; g .09) than girls. Notably, gender differences were moderated by age, interpersonal context, and task valence, underscoring the importance of contextual factors in gender differences. Gender differences in positive emotions were more pronounced with increasing age, with girls showing more positive emotions than boys in middle childhood (g –.20) and adolescence (g –.28). Boys showed more externalizing emotions than girls at toddler/preschool age (g .17) and middle childhood (g .13) and fewer externalizing emotions than girls in adolescence (g –.27). Gender differences were less pronounced with parents and were more pronounced with unfamiliar adults (for positive emotions) and with peers/when alone (for externalizing emotions). Our findings of gender differences in emotion expression in specific contexts have important implications for gender differences in children’s healthy and maladaptive development.

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Gender Differences in Emotion Expression in Children: A Meta-Analytic Review

Women obtain more than half of U.S. undergraduate degrees in biology, chemistry, and mathematics, yet they earn less than 20% of computer science, engineering, and physics undergraduate degrees (National Science Foundation, 2014a). Gender differences in interest in computer science, engineering, and physics appear even before college. Why are women represented in some science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields more than others? We conduct a critical review of the most commonly cited factors explaining gender disparities in STEM participation and investigate whether these factors explain differential gender participation across STEM fields. Math performance and discrimination influence who enters STEM, but there is little evidence to date that these factors explain why women's underrepresentation is relatively worse in some STEM fields. We introduce a model with three overarching factors to explain the larger gender gaps in participation in computer science, engineering, and physics than in biology, chemistry, and mathematics: (a) masculine cultures that signal a lower sense of belonging to women than men, (b) a lack of sufficient early experience with computer science, engineering, and physics, and (c) gender gaps in self-efficacy. Efforts to increase women's participation in computer science, engineering, and physics may benefit from changing masculine cultures and providing students with early experiences that signal equally to both girls and boys that they belong and can succeed in these fields. (PsycINFO Database Record

https://psycnet.apa.org/journals/bul/143/1/1.pdf

Why are some STEM fields more gender balanced than others

Despite the common lay assumption that males and females are profoundly different, Hyde (2005) used data from 46 meta-analyses to demonstrate that males and females are highly similar. Nonetheless, the gender similarities hypothesis has remained controversial. Since Hyde's provocative report, there has been an explosion of meta-analytic interest in psychological gender differences. We utilized this enormous collection of 106 meta-analyses and 386 individual meta-analytic effects to reevaluate the gender similarities hypothesis. Furthermore, we employed a novel data-analytic approach called metasynthesis (Zell & Krizan, 2014) to estimate the average difference between males and females and to explore moderators of gender differences. The average, absolute difference between males and females across domains was relatively small (d = 0.21, SD = 0.14), with the majority of effects being either small (46%) or very small (39%). Magnitude of differences fluctuated somewhat as a function of the psychological domain (e.g., cognitive variables, social and personality variables, well-being), but remained largely constant across age, culture, and generations. These findings provide compelling support for the gender similarities hypothesis, but also underscore conditions under which gender differences are most pronounced.

Evaluating gender similarities and differences using metasynthesis.

The self-conscious emotions (SCE) of guilt, shame, pride, and embarrassment are moral emotions, which motivate adherence to social norms and personal standards and emerge in early childhood following the development of self-awareness. Gender stereotypes of emotion maintain that women experience more guilt, shame, and embarrassment but that men experience more pride. To estimate the magnitude of gender differences in SCE experience and to determine the circumstances under which these gender differences vary, we meta-analyzed 697 effect sizes representing 236,304 individual ratings of SCE states and traits from 382 journal articles, dissertations, and unpublished data sets. Guilt (d = -0.27) and shame (d = -0.29) displayed small gender differences, whereas embarrassment (d = -0.08), authentic pride (d = -0.01), and hubristic pride (d = 0.09) showed gender similarities. Similar to previous findings of ethnic variations in gender differences in other psychological variables, gender differences in shame and guilt were significant only for White samples or samples with unspecified ethnicity. We found larger gender gaps in shame with trait (vs. state) scales, and in guilt and shame with situation- and scenario-based (vs. adjective- and statement-based) items, consistent with predictions that such scales and items tend to tap into global, nonspecific assessments of the self and thus reflect self-stereotyping and gender role assimilative effects. Gender differences in SCE about domains such as the body, sex, and food or eating tended to be larger than gender differences in SCE about other domains. These findings contribute to the literature demonstrating that blanket stereotypes about women's greater emotionality are inaccurate.

Gender Differences in Self-Conscious Emotional Experience: A Meta-Analysis

Despite gender similarities in math and science achievement, women continue to be underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education and careers. Increasingly, researchers are looking to gender differences in STEM attitudes as the root of this disparity. Theoretical support for the importance of STEM attitudes comes from several theories within educational, social, and vocational psychology, including Eccles’ expectancy-value theory, which maintains that education-related choices are shaped by attitudes—namely, expectations of success and task value as well as self-concept. Yet, the studies testing this model generally have not taken into account the intersection of gender and ethnicity. The current study addresses this gap in the literature by describing gender differences in math and science attitudes and achievement among 367 White, African American, Latino/Latina, and Asian American 10th grade students in neighborhood public high schools from a large northeastern ci...

Math and Science Attitudes and Achievement at the Intersection of Gender and Ethnicity

In the years preceding diagnosis, individuals with anorexia nervosa (AN) attend more primary care appointments than their peers. Primary care physicians (PCPs) may be uniquely situated to detect AN in early manifestations. In this study, a sample of physicians was recruited online. Videotaped vignettes of a primary care appointment were shown to these participants, who were asked to diagnose the patient and could make a referral. 61.2% of participants identified an eating disorder (ED) diagnosis. However, of those, only 40% intended to refer for therapy. These findings suggest that the rate of referral to mental health is problematically low among PCPs.

Detection of anorexia nervosa in primary care

The self-conscious emotions (SCE) of guilt, shame, pride, and embarrassment are moral emotions, which motivate adherence to social norms and personal standards and emerge in early childhood following the development of self-awareness. Gender stereotypes of emotion maintain that women experience more guilt, shame, and embarrassment but that men experience more pride. To estimate the magnitude of gender differences in SCE experience and to determine the circumstances under which these gender differences vary, we meta-analyzed 697 effect sizes representing 236,304 individual ratings of SCE states and traits from 382 journal articles, dissertations, and unpublished data sets. Guilt (d 0.27) and shame (d 0.29) displayed small gender differences, whereas embarrassment (d 0.08), authentic pride (d 0.01), and hubristic pride (d 0.09) showed gender similarities. Similar to previous findings of ethnic variations in gender differences in other psychological variables, gender differences in shame and guilt were significant only for White samples or samples with unspecified ethnicity. We found larger gender gaps in shame with trait (vs. state) scales, and in guilt and shame with situation- and scenario-based (vs. adjective- and statement-based) items, consistent with predictions that such scales and items tend to tap into global, nonspecific assessments of the self and thus reflect self-stereotyping and gender role assimilative effects. Gender differences in SCE about domains such as the body, sex, and food or eating tended to be larger than gender differences in SCE about other domains. These findings contribute to the literature demonstrating that blanket stereotypes about women’s greater emotionality are inaccurate.

Gender Differences in Self-Conscious Emotional Experience:

INTRODUCTION: Expert Guidelines endorsed Mechanical Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (mCPR) devices in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In April, 2020, a regional hospital received grant-funding for mCPR devices to reduce team exposure during CPR events. METHOD(S): We aimed to evaluate patient outcomes and teammate perceptions associated with mCPR. The primary clinical outcome measured was 1 hour survival post CPR event among inpatients experiencing a cardiopulmonary arrest before & after mCPR implementation, including subset analysis of CPR events where mCPR was specifically noted as being used. Teammate perceptions comparing resuscitation events with and without the mCPR device, barriers to use, and impact on communication and teamwork were assessed using an electronic survey approximately one year post-implementation. RESULT(S): Respondents to the team survey (n=22) were primarily nurses (81%) in the critical care unit or the critical care code team, Respiratory Therapists (9.5%) & physicians or APPs (9.5%). One third of participants self-reported using the mCPR device 60% or more of the time. Most (72%) indicated a reduction in teammates required in the room for CPR events in the ICU. Participants rated improvement in communication and ability to focus on their role during a Code Blue. Most (76%) "Agreed" or "Strongly Agreed" that the quality of resuscitation is improved when the mCPR is in use. We defined event survival as return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) plus survival >1 hour after the CPR event to align with historic institutional data. Baseline survival (2019) at 1 hour across all inpatient areas was 53.1%. During the 2 years post-implementation, inpatient event survival was similar at 52.9% with confirmed mCPR. In critical care, post implementation non-mCPR codes had 54.2% survival compared with 57.14% confirmed mCPR ICU Codes. mCPR was documented only in about 8% of ICU and non- ICU codes. Data are limited by onconsistent documentation of mCPR Utilization. Measures were implemented May 1 2022 and following to better capture utilization. CONCLUSION(S): Staff report benefits with mCPR. mCPR outcomes should be monitored as a variable in ongoing quality improvement. Further study of quantitative outcomes with subgroup analysis & staff perception of mCPR devices in inpatient CPR events is needed.

Ashley Higgins

Papers

Gender Differences in Self-Conscious Emotional Experience: A Meta-Analysis

Math and Science Attitudes and Achievement at the Intersection of Gender and Ethnicity

Detection of anorexia nervosa in primary care

Gender Differences in Self-Conscious Emotional Experience:

137: automate to resuscitate: outcomes of mechanical cpr two years after acute care implementation