1 Psychology 320: Gender Psychology Lecture 58

2 Invitational Office Hour Invitations, by Student Number for March 25 th 11:30-12:30, 3:30-4:30 Kenny

3 Physical Health and Mental Health: 2. Are there sex differences in depression? 1. What factors account for sex differences in health? (continued)

4 1. define the terms communion and unmitigated communion and discuss their relationships with physical health. 2. discuss sex differences in rates of depression. By the end of today’s class, you should be able to: 3. discuss the role of hormones in accounting for sex differences depression.

5  Communion is unrelated to physical health (Ghaed & Gallo, 2006; Helgeson, 1994).  Unmitigated communion is associated with poorer health practices, more physical symptoms, and poorer health (Ghaed & Gallo, 2006; Helgeson & Fritz, 1998). What factors account for sex differences in health? (continued) (d) Gender-Related Traits (continued)

6 Are there sex differences in depression? According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV-TR), major depressive disorder (i.e., clinical depression) is characterized by five or more of the following symptoms, present for at least 2 weeks:

7 Depressed mood most of the day, nearly every day.* Markedly diminished interest in activities.* Significant weight loss. Insomnia. Psychomotor agitation or retardation. Fatigue or loss of energy. Feelings of worthlessness. Diminished ability to think or concentrate, or indecisiveness. Recurrent thoughts of death. * One of these symptoms must be included in the five symptoms. DSM-IV-TR Criteria for Major Depressive Disorder (APA, 2000)

8 Sample Items from the Center for Epidemiological Studies in Depression Scale (Radloff, 1977) 1. I did not like eating; my appetite was poor. 2. I felt I could not shake off the blues even with the help of my family or friends. 3. I felt that I was just as good as other people.* 4. I had trouble keeping my mind on what I was doing. 5. I felt depressed. 6. I felt that everything I did was an effort. 7. I thought my life had been a failure. 8. My sleep was restless. 9. I felt lonely. 10. People were unfriendly. 11. I enjoyed life.* 12. I had crying spells. 13. I felt sad. 14. I felt that people disliked me. 15. I could not get “going.” * Reverse-scored items.

9 Females are more likely than males to suffer from depression: In the general population, females are two times more likely than males to report depressive symptoms (Culbertson, 1997). In clinical samples, females are two to four times more likely than males to be diagnosed with major depressive disorder (Culbertson, 1997; Kessler, 2003)

10 Sex differences in rates of major depressive disorder emerge in adolescence, peak in young adulthood, and subsequently decrease, with the elderly showing no sex difference in depression (Statistics Canada, 2001). Current estimates indicate that 6% of Canadian females and 3% of Canadian males suffer from major depressive disorder (Statistics Canada, 2001).

11 Percent Rates of Depression in Past Year by Sex and Age (Statistics Canada, 2001)

12 Sex differences in depression are consistently found in developed countries (Alansari, 2006). However, sex differences in depression do not appear among college and university students (Grant et al., 2002).

13 Lifetime Rates of Depression in Developed Countries (Weissman et al., 1996) Lifetime Rate of Depression

14 Depression Rates of Depression Across Educational Levels (Ross & Mirowsky, 2006)

15 A number of factors have been proposed to account for sex differences in depression: 1. Hormones (a) Some theorists maintain that testosterone “protects” males from depression. However, research demonstrates a curvilinear relationship between testosterone levels and depression among males (Booth et al., 1999).

16 (b) Some theorists maintain that the hormonal fluctuations associated with the female reproductive system make females more susceptible to depression than males. However, research has failed to demonstrate that the hormonal (e.g., estrogen) changes associated with menstruation or menopause are consistently linked to depression among females (Erdincler et al., 2004; Nolen-Hoeksema & Girgus, 1994).

17 (c) Some theorists maintain that changes in oxytocin regulation during puberty cause females to be more reactive to interpersonal stressors and, thus, more vulnerable to depression. However, some research has shown that oxytocin reduces women’s reactivity to stress (e.g., by lowering blood pressure; Grewen et al., 2005)

18 Physical Health and Mental Health: 2. Are there sex differences in depression? 1. What factors account for sex differences in health? (continued)