The original question: Are women compared to men more naturally inclined to be depressed? Explain your rationale.
My answer (beware: long):
I do not think that women are naturally more inclined to be depressed. Women are not more sensitive or fragile. We're all people with emotions that do not hinge on the basis of gender. I love people and I love getting to know them. In the process of getting to know people, you often begin to learn about their problems; either through observation or them telling you. My own personal experience with depression, in combination with talking to others, has made me realize just how widespread depression is. I was shocked to read that "Woman are about twice as likely as men to be diagnosed with major depressive disorder" (Nevid, Rathus, and Greene). On further reflection, this began to make sense.
There is a difference I've seen in the way depression is handled. Most of the woman I know who have experienced-- or are still struggling with-- depression have gotten some form of help for it. The men I know are generally different. Some self-describe as depressed. Others have some concerning thoughts and views of life. I'm definitely not a psychologist but my own experience leads me to strongly suspect that depression is at play. They won't even admit it to themselves, let alone seek professional help. This makes me think that the key word in the text was 'diagnosed'. According to Addis and Mahalik, "Several studies have confirmed that men also seek psychiatric services, psychotherapy, and counseling less often than women" (Addis and Mahalik 6). Men cannot be diagnosed with depression if they do not seek help.
The reasons men don't seem to ask for help as much seems largely societal. According to Simon Rice, "The expression of externalising depression symptoms is theorised to result from socialisation processes and associated conformity to masculine norms emphasising male autonomy, stoicism and invulnerability, where anger is the only negative emotion that men are socially permitted to exhibit" (Rice, Fallon, Aucote, and Moller-Leimkuhler 950). Males are not expected to show signs of weakness, even if they feel weak. This has very negative effects, as "In comparison to females, males are four times more likely to die by suicide" (Rice, Fallon, Aucote, and Moller-Leimkuhler 950).
So men do not seek help as often as women and they have higher rates of suicide despite the fact that women are twice as likely to receive a depression diagnosis. It seems that diagnosis is not the most reliable indicator of depression, although it is the most commonly looked at. Of course it is! It's not right to go around telling people that they're depressed when they didn't ask for your help. Indeed, they cannot be accurately diagnosed if they don't ask for help. The statistical representation of people who are not receiving medical or psychiatric help for depression cannot, by definition, be known! There is correlation between gender and depression on several fronts. Woman may, in fact, be more depressed than men. It probably doesn't help that they're more often victims of sexual assault and domestic violence. However, until the proportion of men getting help for their depression is closer to the proportion of women getting help for their depression, diagnostic rates cannot be the standard for thinking that women are more inclined to be depressed.
I do not think that women are naturally more inclined to be depressed. Women are not more sensitive or fragile. We're all people with emotions that do not hinge on the basis of gender. I love people and I love getting to know them. In the process of getting to know people, you often begin to learn about their problems; either through observation or them telling you. My own personal experience with depression, in combination with talking to others, has made me realize just how widespread depression is. I was shocked to read that "Woman are about twice as likely as men to be diagnosed with major depressive disorder" (Nevid, Rathus, and Greene). On further reflection, this began to make sense.
There is a difference I've seen in the way depression is handled. Most of the woman I know who have experienced-- or are still struggling with-- depression have gotten some form of help for it. The men I know are generally different. Some self-describe as depressed. Others have some concerning thoughts and views of life. I'm definitely not a psychologist but my own experience leads me to strongly suspect that depression is at play. They won't even admit it to themselves, let alone seek professional help. This makes me think that the key word in the text was 'diagnosed'. According to Addis and Mahalik, "Several studies have confirmed that men also seek psychiatric services, psychotherapy, and counseling less often than women" (Addis and Mahalik 6). Men cannot be diagnosed with depression if they do not seek help.
The reasons men don't seem to ask for help as much seems largely societal. According to Simon Rice, "The expression of externalising depression symptoms is theorised to result from socialisation processes and associated conformity to masculine norms emphasising male autonomy, stoicism and invulnerability, where anger is the only negative emotion that men are socially permitted to exhibit" (Rice, Fallon, Aucote, and Moller-Leimkuhler 950). Males are not expected to show signs of weakness, even if they feel weak. This has very negative effects, as "In comparison to females, males are four times more likely to die by suicide" (Rice, Fallon, Aucote, and Moller-Leimkuhler 950).
So men do not seek help as often as women and they have higher rates of suicide despite the fact that women are twice as likely to receive a depression diagnosis. It seems that diagnosis is not the most reliable indicator of depression, although it is the most commonly looked at. Of course it is! It's not right to go around telling people that they're depressed when they didn't ask for your help. Indeed, they cannot be accurately diagnosed if they don't ask for help. The statistical representation of people who are not receiving medical or psychiatric help for depression cannot, by definition, be known! There is correlation between gender and depression on several fronts. Woman may, in fact, be more depressed than men. It probably doesn't help that they're more often victims of sexual assault and domestic violence. However, until the proportion of men getting help for their depression is closer to the proportion of women getting help for their depression, diagnostic rates cannot be the standard for thinking that women are more inclined to be depressed.
Works Cited
Addis, Michael E., and James R. Mahalik. "Men, Masculinity, and the Contexts of Help Seeking." American Psychologist 58.1 (2003): 5-14. Print.
Nevid, Jeffrey S., Spencer A. Rathus, and Beverly Greene. Abnormal Psychology in a Changing World. 9th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1997. Print.
Rice, Simon M., Barry J. Fallon, Helen M. Aucote, and Anne Maria Moler-Leimkuhler. "Development and Preliminary Validation of the Male Depression Risk Scale: Furthering the Assessment of Depression in Men." Journal of Affective Disorders 151.3 (2013): 950-58. Print.
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