Sexual typification and mental health of women and men in Spain

Main Article Content

M. Pilar Matud Aznar
Ignacio Ibáñez Fernández
Juan M. Bethencourt Pérez
Marisela López Curbelo
Montserrat Gomà Freixanet

Abstract

Study in which the association between sexual typing and mental health in women and men was analyzed, that is, the relevance of self-esteem and social support in said relationship was observed. The sample was made up of 781 adults from the general Spanish population, of which 55.7% were made up of women and 44.3% were men. We found statistically significant correlations between sexual typing and some mental health symptoms, although, at least in men, self-esteem seemed to be the most important variable, since men with higher self-esteem have fewer symptoms. Also in women, self-esteem seems to be the most relevant factor in their mental health, since women with higher self-esteem have less depressive, somatic, anxiety and insomnia symptoms and social dysfunction. Instrumental social support was also associated with lower mental health symptoms in women. And, although the magnitude of the association was small, the most sexually typified women had more symptoms of anxiety and insomnia and social dysfunction.

Keywords:
Gender Sexual typing Mental health Self-esteem Social support

References

Athenstaedt, U., Heinzle, C. & Lerchbaumer, G. (2008). Gender subgroup self-categorization and gender role self-concept. Sex Roles, 58, 266-278.

Barry, D. T. & Beitel, M. (2006). Sex role ideology among East Asian immigrants in the United States. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 76, 512-517.

Bassoff, E. S. & Glass, G. V. (1982). The relationship between sex roles and mental health: a meta-analysis of twenty-six studies. The Counseling Psychologist, 10, 105-112.

Bem, S. L. (1974). The measurement of psychological androgyny. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 42, 155-162.

Bem, S. L. (1981). Gender schema theory: a cognitive account of sex typing. Psychological Review, 88, 354–364.

Bem, S. L. (1993). The lenses of gender. New Haven: Yale University Press.

Cohen, S. & Wills, T. A. (1985). Stress, social support and the buffering hypothesis. Psychological Bulletin, 98, 310-357.

Courtenay, W. H. (2000). Constructions of masculinity and their influence on men’s wellbeing: a theory of gender and health. Social Science & Medicine, 50, 1385-1401.

Culbertson, F. M. (1997). Depression and gender. An international review. American Psychologist, 52, 25-31.

Cyranowski, J. M., Frank, E., Young, E. & Shear, M. K. (2000). Adolescent onset of the gender difference in lifetime rates of major depression. A theoretical model. Archives of General Psychiatry, 57, 21-27.

Egan, S. K. & Perry, D. G. (2001) Gender identity. A multidimensional analysis with implications for psychosocial adjustment. Developmental Psychology, 37, 451-463.

Emslie, C., Fuhrer, R., Hunt, K., Macintyre, S., Shipley, M. & Stansfeld, S. (2002). Gender differences in mental health: evidence from three organizations. Social Science & Medicine, 54, 621-624.

Emslie, C., Hunt, K. & Macintyre, S. (1999). Gender differences in minor morbidity among full time employees of a British university. Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health, 53, 465-475.

Goldberg, D. P. & Hillier, V. F. (1979). A scaled version of the General Health Questionnaire. Psychological Medicine, 9, 139-145.

Good, G. E., Sherron, N. B. & Dillon, M. G. (2000). Masculine gender role stressors and men’s health. En R. M. Eisler y M. Hersen (Eds.), Handbook of gender, culture and health (pp. 63-81). Mahwah: LEA.

Holt, C. L. & Ellis, J. B. (1998). Assesing the current validity of thr Bem Sex-Role Inventory. Sex Roles, 39, 929-941.

Huselid, R. F. & Cooper, M. L. (1994). Gender roles as mediators of sex differences in expressions of pathology. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 103, 495-603.

Kessler, R. C., McGonagle, K. A., Zhao, S., Nelson, C. B., Hughes, M., Eshleman, S., Wittchen, H. & Kendler, K. S. (1994). Lifetime and 12-month prevalence of DSM-III-R psychiatric disorders in the United States. Archives of General Psychiatry, 51, 8-19.

Klinsten, K. C., Hyde, J. S., Showers, C. J. & Buswell, B. N. (1999). Gender differences in selfesteem: A Meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 125, 470-500.

Kroenke, K. & Spitzer, R. L. (1998). Gender differences in reporting of physical and somatoform symptoms. Psychosomatic Medicine, 60, 150-155.

Lefkowitz, E. S. & Zeldow, P. B. (2006). Masculinity and femininity predict optimal mental health. A belated test of the androgyny hypothesis. Journal of Personality Assessment, 87, 95-101.

Lengua, L. J. & Stormshak, J. J. (2000). Gender, gender roles, and personality: Gender differences in the prediction of doping and psychological symptoms. Sex Roles, 43, 787-820.

Lindorff, M. (2000). It is better to perceive than receive? Social support, stress and strain for managers. Psychology Health & Medicine, 5, 271-286.

López-Sáez, M., Morales, J. F. & Lisbona, A. (2008). Evolution of gender stereotypes in Spain: Traits and roles. The Spanish Journal of Psychology, 11, 609-617.

Matud, M. P. (1998). Investigación del estrés y su impacto en la salud de las mujeres en Canarias. Informe del proyecto de investigación. Instituto Canario de la Mujer.

Matud, M. P. (2005). Diferencias de género en los síntomas más comunes de salud mental en una muestra de residentes en Canarias, España. Revista Mexicana de Psicología, 22, 395-403.

Matud, M. P., Ibáñez, I., Bethencourt, J. M., Marrero, R. & Carballeira, M. (2003). Structural differences in perceived social support. Personality and Individual Differences, 35, 1919-1929.

Matud, M. P., Ibáñez, I., Marrero, R. & Carballeira, M. (2003). Diferencias en autoestima en función del género. Análisis y Modificación de Conducta, 29, 51-78.

Mirowsky, J. & Ross, C. E. (1995). Sex differences in distress: Real o artifact? American Sociological Review, 60, 449-468.

Nolen-Hoeksema, S. & Keita, G. P. (2003). Women and depression: Introduction. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 27, 89-90.

Organización Mundial de la Salud (2003). Why gender and health? Encontrado el día 3 de enero de 2004 en http://www.Who.int/gender/henderandhealth.html

Organización Mundial de la Salud (2004). Gender in Mental Health Research. Ginebra: Organización Mundial de la Salud.

Oswald, P. A. (2004). An examination of the current usefulness of the Bem Sex-Role Inventory. Psychological Reports, 94, 1331-1336.

Rector, N. A, & Roger, D. (1993, julio). Self-concept and emotion-control. Presentación en el 3rd Annual Meeting of the European Congress of Psychology. Helsinki, Finland.

Rector, N. A. & Roger, D. (1996). Cognitive style and well-being: a prospective examination. Personality & Individual Differences, 21, 663-674.

Sánchez, D. T. & Crocker, J. (2005). How investment in gender ideals affects well-being: the role of external contingencies of self-worth. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 29, 63–77.

Smith, S. M. & Petty, R. E. (1995). Personality moderators of mood congruency effects on cognition. The role of self-esteem and negative mood regulation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68, 1092-1107.

Sweeting, H. & West, P. (2003). Sex differences in health at ages 11, 13 and 15. Social Science & Medicine, 56, 31-39.

Thomas, D. A. & Reznikoff, M. (1984). Sex role orientation, personality structure, and adjustment in women. Journal of Personality Assessment, 48, 28-36.

Thornton, B. & Rachel, L. (1992). Gender typing, importance of multiples roles, and mental health consequences for women. Sex Roles, 27, 307-317.

Van Well, S. Kolf, A. M. & Oei, N. Y. (2007). Direct and indirect assessment of gender role identification. Sex Roles, 56, 617-628.

Weissman, M. M. & Klerman, G. K. (1977). Sex differences and the epidemiology of depression. Archives of General Psychiatry, 34, 98-111.

Whitley, B. E. (1983). Sex role orientation and self-esteem: A critical meta-analytic review. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 44, 765-778.

Yu, L. & Xie, D. (2008). The relationship between desirable and undesirable gender role traits, and their implications for psychological well-being in Chinese culture. Personality and Individual Differences, 44, 1517-1527.

Zeldow, P. B., Daugherty, S. R. & Clark, D. (1987). Masculinity, femininity, and psychosocial adjustment in medical students: A 2-year follow-up. Journal of Personality Assessment, 51, 3-14.

Article Details