Feminine Gender Roles and Mental Health
HOW ARE THEY RELATED?
Gender and its various roles are undoubtedly, quite significant in dictating mental
health and mental illnesses. Both males and females have distinctive power and
control over a number of socio-economic factors impacting mental health. This
kind of power is sourced from gender-based aspects themselves. On a broader
horizon, gender affects individuals’ lives, social status, and proneness to particular
risks associated with mental health. Statistically speaking, women tend to
encounter much greater rates of mental diseases in comparison to men of all ages
and religions around the world. As a matter of fact, a recent study even suggests
that adolescents who are followers of more traditional gender roles tend to have an
attitude which results into worse outcomes based on mental health.

SPECIFICS OF FACTORS RELATIVE TO GENDER ROLES IMPACTING MENTAL HEALTH
Over the years, various gender-based norms have developed. Upon studying the
connection between gender roles and health, it can be deduced that masculinity
(qualities or attributes regarded as characteristic of men) is specifically associated
with improved physical and mental health. On the other hand, women are twice as
likely to have unipolar depression. Apart from being a majority of women’s most
common mental health problems, depression is likely to be more continual in
women than in men. Women predominate in the case of individuals facing three or
more comorbid diseases with a higher likelihood to experience the disability
associated with mental illness. The variations in mental health caused by gender
differences have been reported in the age of onset of symptoms, frequency of
psychotic symptoms, course of these disorders, social adjustment, and long-term
outcome.

Several mental health issues have an inter-connected relationship with
gender-based roles, stressors, and negative life experiences and events.
Gender-based violence, socioeconomic disadvantage, low income, and income
inequality, low or subordinate social status, and rank and unremitting responsibility
for the care of others are risk factors which can be classified as “gender specific”
and have a disproportionate impact on females. Apart from this, the number of
women subject to some form of sexual violence is increasing. Subsequently, this has
resulted in a high rate of PTSD (Post Traumatic Sex Order) with the sufferers
mostly being women. Hence, women are the largest single group being impacted
here.
On the other hand, a study suggests gender is an aspect which contributes to an
individual’s attitude when it comes to seeking help of mental health experts.
According to the findings of this study, compared to their male counterparts,