8- Gender Differences in Stress

Question 1

which gender has greater exposure to chronic stress ?

Answer 1

women

Question 2

which gender rates stress more intensely ?

Answer 2

women

Question 3

what are the 2 traumatic events usually reported by women ?

Answer 3

childhood sexual abuse and adult sexual assault

Question 4

who is more likely to experience traumatic effects ?

Answer 4

men, 36% more likely

Question 5

what are the traumatic events usually reported by men?

Answer 5

accidents, etc

Question 6

what is the difference between tasks that stress men and women?

Answer 6

men: achievement tasks
women: socially oriented tasks

Question 7

what are engagement strategies ?

Answer 7

reduce likelihood of maladaptive response to stress (problem solving, positive thinking, etc)
problem-focused response

Question 8

what are disengagement strategies ?

Answer 8

mediate relationship between perceived stress and psychopathology (avoidance, denial, wishfull thinking)
emotion focused response

Question 9

what is the socialization hypothesis ?

Answer 9

attributes associated with gender roles influence types of socially acceptable responses to stress and therefore the coping strategy used

Question 10

what is the role-constraint hypothesis ?

Answer 10

gender roles increase/decrease likelihood of occupying different societal roles

Question 11

what did the Sontag study show

Answer 11

girls: engagement coping, symptoms of anxiety depression
boys: overt aggression in reaction to stress

Question 12

in the Sontag study, what was disengagement associated with?

Answer 12

decreased overt aggression, therefore may serve a protective purpose

Question 13

in the Sontag study, what is the problem for men in using engagement methods ?

Answer 13

conflict with social conventions

Question 14

what did the Tamers study find ?

Answer 14

women have more coping strategies across all stressors

Question 15

what are gender differences in physiological responses to stress ?

Answer 15

men: increased BP
women: increased HR

Question 16

how does hippocampus volume depend on gender

Answer 16

women: hippocampus volume associated with birth weight and maternal care : emotionality, warmth, friendliness

men: associated with high locus of control
measure of personal competency

Question 17

what does hippocampus volume relate to ?

Answer 17

magnitude of stress response

Question 18

how do oral contraceptives influence cortisol levels ?

Answer 18

decrease cortisol lvl

body compensates with cortisol increase

Question 19

what pituitary hormone is higher in women? what pituitary hormone higher in men? what are their roles ?

Answer 19

oxytocin higher in women, dampens stress response

vasopressin higher in men, stimulates stress response

Question 20

what do the difference in gender & pituitary hormone levels explain in psychosocial stress situations?

Answer 20

women: tend to befriend
men: fight or flight

Question 21

what is a main risk factor in CHD ?

Answer 21

low control over domestic conditions, but only FOR WOMEN (3x more CHD)
men, no difference

Question 22

what acts as a protective mechanism against CHD in women?

Answer 22

estrogen

Question 23

what may contribute to higher rate of depression in women?

Answer 23

higher prevalence of childhood sexual abuse in women

Question 24

what is a main risk factor for depression in men and women?

Answer 24

childhood sex abuse

Question 25

what gender 2x more likely to get PTSD ?

Answer 25

women