Abstract
Masculine gender role discrepancy is men’s perception of themselves as people who fail to conform to traditional masculine norms. There is solid scientific evidence that gender role discrepancy is related to grave mental health outcomes such as depression. Yet, the mechanisms that explain the relationship between masculine gender role discrepancy and masculine depression remain unclear. As individual differences in men are suggested to be associated with depression, the current study examined the mediating role of self-compassion and the moderating role of restrictive emotionality in the association between masculine gender role discrepancy and masculine depression. For the current study, a structured questionnaire was distributed through online means, resulting in a sample of 954 men aged 18 and older. The results reveal that self-compassion partially mediated the relationship between gender role discrepancy and masculine depression. Moreover, the positive effect of gender role discrepancy on masculine depression was found to be more pronounced at higher levels of restrictive emotionality. The current study illustrates how individual differences in adherence to traditional masculine gender norms, as manifested in restrictive emotionality, contribute to explaining the relationship between gender role discrepancy and negative mental health outcomes evident in masculine depression. Moreover, the current findings postulate that self-compassionate men are better able to experience emotional equanimity than their less self-compassionate counterparts, when faced with negative thoughts and perceptions about themselves or their life, thus diminishing the negative effect of gender role discrepancy on masculine depression.
Details
Presentation Type
Theme
The Physiology, Kinesiology and Psychology of Wellness in its Social Context
KEYWORDS
Gender, Men, Emotionality, Compassion, Masculine, Depression
