The Stressed Sex: Uncovering the Truth About Men, Women, and Mental Health

Oxford University clinical psychologist Daniel Freeman and self-help author Jason Freeman (the two coauthored Anxiety) discuss the differing rates of mental illness and mental disorders between the sexes to explore how gender affects mental health. Citing a range of epidemiological studies conducted globally over the last 20 years, the authors show how genetics and environment “work in tandem” to create mental disorders. Women, who are much more likely than men to struggle with depression and anxiety, face unique environmental challenges: they are more likely to suffer triggering events like sexual abuse and domestic violence, and many wage lifelong battles against the strictures of traditional gender roles. Men, on the other hand, are more prone to substance-abuse problems, a trend the authors also chalk up to a combination of genetic and situational factors. The Freemans also discuss some “less common problems,” including eating disorders (which skew mostly female) and autism (an “overwhelmingly male condition”). The authors acknowledge that there are many flaws in the available research, and they recommend long-term studies that would follow participants over the course of their lives in order to “link... social influences to an individual’s life history, genetic make-up, biology, and psychological processes.” Freeman’s book is well-reasoned, thoroughly researched, and worthy of attention. (Aug.)