Gender differences in preferences for psychological treatment, coping strategies, and triggers to help‐seeking

Abstract

Objective. There is some evidence that men and women deal with stress in different ways; for example, a meta-analysis found that women prefer to focus on emotions as a coping strategy more than men do. However, sex differences in preferences for therapy is a subject little explored. Design.A cross-sectional online survey.Method. Participants (115 men and 232 women) were recruited via relevant websites and social media. The survey described therapies and asked participants how much they liked each. Their coping strategies and help-seeking behaviour were assessed too.Results. Survey data were analysed using multiple linear regression. After familywise adjustment of the alpha for multiple testing to p < .0125, and controlling for other relevant variables, men liked support groups more than women did (b = À.163, p < .010), used sex or pornography to cope with stress more than women did (Exp [B] = .280, p < .0002), and thought that there is a lack of male-friendly options more than women did (Exp[B] = .264, p < .002). The majority of participants expressed no preference for the sex of their therapist, but of those who did, men were only slightly more likely to prefer a female therapist whereas women were much more likely to prefer females (p < .0004). Even after familywise adjustment, there were still more significant findings than would be expected by chance (p < .001, two-tailed).Conclusions. Although there are many similarities in the preferences of men and women regarding therapy, our findings support the hypothesis that men and women show statistically significant differences of relevance to clinical psychologists. Practitioner pointsMen are less inclined than women to seek help for psychological issues This study demonstrates that men and women show significant differences in some aspects of therapy, coping behaviour, and help-seeking It is possible that men would be more inclined to seek help if therapies catered more for men's preferences Practitioners can learn to improve the success of their practice by taking the gender of clients into account

The relationship between clients' preferences of therapists' sex and mental health support seeking: An exploratory study

“…This is in line with recent literature (Ip et al, 2016;Liddon et al, 2017) and emphasises the importance of researching and accommodating sex preferences of prospective clients. This is in line with recent literature (Ip et al, 2016;Liddon et al, 2017) and emphasises the importance of researching and accommodating sex preferences of prospective clients.…”

“…Earlier studies found unilateral preferences for male therapists (Bernstein, Hofmann, & Wade, 1987), whereas more recent research observed unilateral preferences for female therapists (Landes, Burton, King, & Sullivan, 2013) or no preference (Ip et al, 2016;Liddon, Kingerlee, & Barry, 2017). Earlier studies found unilateral preferences for male therapists (Bernstein, Hofmann, & Wade, 1987), whereas more recent research observed unilateral preferences for female therapists (Landes, Burton, King, & Sullivan, 2013) or no preference (Ip et al, 2016;Liddon, Kingerlee, & Barry, 2017).…”

Next of kin's motives for psychosocial consultation—Oncology social workers' perceptions of 54 next of kin cases

“…Although the difference in help‐seeking behaviour between men and women among NOK is surely notable, it does confirm previous studies showing that women to a much higher degree seek various professional psychosocial support and counselling and that female partners to cancer patients report higher levels of anxiety and psychological distress than male partners . Common explanations for gendered help‐seeking behaviour have been that men are more likely to find support in their family and social network and are more reluctant to engage in interventions focusing on emotional disclosure . A plausible suggestion for gendered differences might also be that not only people's help‐seeking behaviour but also health personnel's referrals are influenced by norms and ideas of men as stoic and women as help‐seeking, ie, that women are more inclined and more often encouraged to engage in psychosocial support while distressed and that men might seek other types of support.…”

Sex differences in psychological distress, behavioural and emotional problems, and substance use in young people in out‐of‐home care

“…Case managers and carers should be provided psychoeducation to inform them about sex differences in behaviours and mental health. Apart from the differences described here, there can also be other considerations including sex differences in health and mental health literacy (Cotton, Wright, Harris, Jorm, & Mcgorry, ), help‐seeking (Liddon, Kingerlee, & Barry, ), coping and resilience (Liddon et al, ), and willingness to accept support (Liddon et al, ). Upskilling case managers and carers in these issues is especially important given that young people do not necessarily instigate help‐seeking for mental health and behavioural problems (Rickwood, Deane, & Wilson, ).…”

“…Apart from the differences described here, there can also be other considerations including sex differences in health and mental health literacy (Cotton, Wright, Harris, Jorm, & Mcgorry, 2006), help-seeking (Liddon, Kingerlee, & Barry, 2018), coping and resilience (Liddon et al, 2018), and willingness to accept support (Liddon et al, 2018).…”