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Gender differences in cognitive vulnerability to depression and behavior problems in adolescents

Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, April, 2005 by Esther Calvete, Olga Cardenoso

Epidemiological research has consistently demonstrated that whereas women present a higher prevalence of internalizing problems, such as affective and anxiety disorders, men have higher rates of some personality disorders, such as antisocial personality disorder and substance abuse (Simon, 2002). Most theories of gender differences in psychological disorders have focused on depression. Early research emphasized macrosocial risk factors for depression, such as poverty, low educational status, poorer employment opportunities, and lack of control over decision making, and suggested that they are unequally distributed between sexes in several cultures (Nolen-Hoeksema, Larson, & Grayson, 1999). In addition, role-gender interaction theory proposes that the lower social status of women negatively influences the quality of their social roles (Gove, 1972). The unrewarding and stressful nature of these roles may account for the higher rate of depression in women.

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Nonetheless, recent research suggests that gender differences in psychological problems are evident during childhood and adolescence, prior to the acquisition of adult social roles. Therefore, role-gender interaction theory alone cannot account for the differences. For instance, gender differences in depression begin to emerge at age 14 (Wade, Cairney, & Pevalin, 2002), and during the period from ages 15 to 18 the female rate of depression rises to double the prevalence rate for males (Hankin et al., 1998). In addition, gender differences in behavior problems, such as aggressive behavior and antisocial behavior, are also evident during childhood and adolescence, with boys showing higher rates of these problems than girls (e.g., Keiley, Bates, Dodge, & Pettit, 2000; Lahey et al., 2000).

As an alternative explanation, a number of recent theoretical models have hypothesized that cognitive style may account for gender differences in depression (Cyranowski, Frank, Young, & Shear, 2000; Hankin & Abramson, 2001). For instance, Hankin and Abramson (2001) proposed a cognitive vulnerability-transactional stress theory of depression, in which girls' responses to negative events would be characterized by rumination and a negative inferential style. Although a few studies have failed to support this hypothesis (Hankin, Abramson, & Siler, 2001; Lewinsohn, Joiner, & Rohde, 2001), Hankin and Abramson (2002) found that cognitive characteristics, such as negative inferences about the self, mediated gender differences in depressive symptoms. These authors suggested that lack of prior support for the model could be due to problems with the reliability of measures of cognitive vulnerability.

As an extension of the above model, we examined whether male and female adolescents differ in a wide range of cognitive variables, which in turn may be associated with differential development of depression and behavior problems. One of the difficulties in addressing gender differences in cognitive variables is the complexity of both the content of cognitions and their hierarchical arrangement. Beck's (1976) cognitive content-specificity model stated that each emotional disorder is characterized by a cognitive content that is specific to that disorder. Applying this idea to gender differences in psychological disorders, it could be argued that females present a higher prevalence of cognitions that may be associated with the development and/or maintenance of depression, whereas males present more cognitions related to behavior problems. In other words, men and women may develop different profiles of psychological disorders because they think and interpret events in different ways. For instance, according to the cognitive content-specificity model, depression, which is more prevalent among women, is characterized by a predominance of negative cognitions related to themes of loss, deprivation, failure, and personal inadequacy (Clark, Beck, & Brown, 1989), whereas behavior problems, which are more prevalent among men, have been associated with perceptions of negative intentions in other people, underestimation of one's own responsibility for conflicts (e.g., Dodge & Crick, 1990; Lochman, White, & Wayland, 1991), and perceptions of frustration and discomfort (Berkowitz, 1989).

Cognitive contents can also be expressed at different levels. Beck proposed a hierarchical model that includes surface cognitions and underlying cognitive structures to explain the cognitive influence on affective disorders (Beck, 1976). Later, a number of authors (e.g., Ingram & Kendall, 1986) subdivided cognitive variables into cognitive structures, cognitive processes, and cognitive products. At the deepest level, cognitive structures consist of schemas or core beliefs about the self, the world, and the relations with other persons. Ellis (1962) identified a number of irrational beliefs considered to be critical determinants of psychopathology, such as the need for approval, low frustration tolerance, and perfectionism. Several studies have obtained evidence for the link between irrational beliefs and depression (e.g., Chang & D'Zurilla, 1996; Marcotte, 1996). In addition, some studies suggest that externalizing problems, such as aggressive behavior, are associated with specific beliefs concerning the justification for the use of aggression (Feindler, 1991; Slaby & Guerra, 1988).

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Gender differences in cognitive vulnerability to depression and behavior problems in adolescents

Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, April, 2005 by Esther Calvete, Olga Cardenoso

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