Course Objective
- To define the “gender gap” in depression
- To identify the hypothesized biological reasons for the “gender gap” in depression
- To identify the hypothesized social and environmental reasons for the “gender gap” in depression
- To explain the differences in how depression manifests in males vs. females
- To describe the research that refutes common objections to the “gender gap” in depression
- To describe the dynamic perspectives of gender
Date: July 11, 2017
Presenter:
Jonathan Platt, MPH, MPhil
Psychiatric Epidemiology Fellow
Columbia University Department of Epidemiology
Currently, the literature indicates that women are much more likely than men to be diagnosed with depression. While there have been some who try to attribute this difference to various research flaws, there is good evidence to refute these rebuttals and there do in fact appear to be gender differences in mental health. In this webinar, Jonathan Platt, MPH, MPhil, discusses the epidemiology of depression and the various hypotheses that have been proposed to explain the “gender gap.” These include issues of genes and hormones, social stress, epigenetics, and others. He describes the dynamic perspectives of gender and the importance of intersectionality in research design and program planning.
