The Experience of Symptoms of Depression in Men vs Women

Abstract

<h3>Importance</h3> When men are depressed they may experience symptoms that are different than what is included in the current diagnostic criteria. <h3>Objective</h3> To explore whether sex disparities in depression rates disappear when alternative symptoms are considered in the place of, or in addition to, more conventional depression symptoms. <h3>Design, Setting, Participants, and Main Outcomes and Measures</h3> Using data from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication, a nationally represented mental health survey, we evaluated sex differences in symptom endorsement in 2 new scales that included alternative depression symptoms. We analyzed sex differences in symptom endorsement using 2-sided, design-based, .05-level<i>t</i>tests and multivariate logistic regression to identify predictors of depression. <h3>Results</h3> Men reported higher rates of anger attacks/aggression, substance abuse, and risk taking compared with women. Analyses using the scale that included alternative, male-type symptoms of depression found that a higher proportion of men (26.3%) than women (21.9%) (<i>P</i> = .007) met criteria for depression. Analyses using the scale that included alternative and traditional depression symptoms found that men and women met criteria for depression in equal proportions: 30.6% of men and 33.3% of women (<i>P</i> = .57). <h3>Conclusions and Relevance</h3> When alternative and traditional symptoms are combined, sex disparities in the prevalence of depression are eliminated. Further study is needed to clarify which symptoms truly describe men’s experiences of depression.