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GENDER, STRESS, AND MENTAL HEALTH. PSYC 3006 Whether you are…
GENDER, STRESS, AND MENTAL HEALTH. PSYC 3006
Whether you are male or female, you no doubt face some level of stress in your life. Even good things that happen, such as marriage, a job promotion, a move to a new home, or birth of a baby, can be stressful. People deal with stress in different ways. Some handle life stressors in positive and healthy ways, while others allow stressors to impact their health. The damaging effects of stress have been shown to be a potential factor in cardiovascular disease, cancer, hypertension, and numerous other issues. In addition, there are many stress-related mental health problems, such as depression, suicide, anxiety, and substance abuse that can be in part related to stress and the ability to deal effectively with stress.
Life’s stressors can be very different for men and women. Men experience different stresses in life and often deal with stress differently than women do. For example, men and women have different roles and expectations from others placed on them. Men and women experience violence, both as children and as adults, at different rates, which has been shown to be a significant factor in serious mental health problems and ongoing stress. Men and women experience discrimination differently, which adds to stress, especially in the workplace. Women tend to be in poverty more often than men, which is a significant factor in stress, depression, and anxiety. These are only a few examples where research suggests that the stress factors for men and women are different.
Other factors contribute to stress and resulting health problems and can be different for men and women. For example, women typically develop stronger support systems than men do as adults, which has been show to improve the ability to deal with stress. Men may perceive themselves as having more power over those things that cause them stress than women do. Power often impacts how one copes with stress. And though men and women often have families as their support system, women tend to take on the role of the family caretaker, which can be a significant stressor. It may also be that men and women react to stressful situations differently, either because of personal traits or because of how they have been socialized. Some research suggests that women tend to respond to stress with more emotion, while men may respond to stress with more problem-solving behaviors.
RESOURCES
Brannon, L. (2017). Gender: Psychological perspectives (7th ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.
Chapter 14, “Stress, Coping, and Psychopathology” (pp. 429-456)
Chapter 13, “Health and Fitness” (pp. 390-418)
American Psychological Association (APA). (2016). Stress management Links to an external site.. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/topics/stress/index.aspx
Kiely, K. M., Brady, B., & Byles, J. (2019). Gender, mental health, and ageing Links to an external site.. Maturitas, 129, 76-84. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.maturitas.2019.09.004
Mayor, E. (2015). Gender roles and traits in stress and health Links to an external site.. Frontiers in Psychology, 6, 779. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00779. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4460297/
MY COLLEAGUE’SPOST
A stressful situation people go through is stress at work. No person can avoid stress (Brannon, 2017). Stressors include work, lack of communication when given work, lack of support while performing the job, criticism from other colleagues, and the environment. Men tend to follow society’s expectations since they are supposed to be the breadwinners. (Brannon, 2017). According to men, stress comes with the territory and is normal; they should not complain, so they hold their emotions. Women are supposed to be able to cope with work stress and then come home to care for the family (Brannon, 2017). Women are expected to show emotion and can be considered weak if they share how stressful work has been with peers. Stress has a domino effect on men and women, leading to mental and physical health. People can develop uncontrolled stress, headaches, stomachaches, change in temper, lack of focus, and sleeping problems (APA, 2016). I had serious stress triggers in my past two jobs, affecting my self-confidence and physical health. Thinking back, I am not sure why I stayed so long, but I am glad to be slowly getting over all those triggers and have a job where stress is not a common denominator.
References:
American Psychological Association (APA). (2016). Stress management Links to an external site.. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/topics/stress/index.aspxLinks to an external site.
Brannon, L. (2017). Gender: Psychological perspectives (7th ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.
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