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Gender differences in worry and associated cognitive-behavioral variables.

Melisa Robichaud1, Michel J Dugas, Michael Conway

  • 1Department of Psychology, Centre for Research in Human Development, Concordia University, 7141 Sherbrooke Street West, Montreal, Que., Canada H4B 1R6.

Journal of Anxiety Disorders
|August 28, 2003
PubMed
Summary

Women report higher worry than men, particularly concerning confidence. Cognitive factors like negative problem orientation and thought suppression explain these gender differences in worry.

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Area of Science:

  • Psychology
  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Gender Studies

Background:

  • Empirical evidence indicates significant gender disparities in reported worry levels, with women typically reporting greater worry than men.
  • Understanding the cognitive mechanisms underlying these gender differences in worry is crucial for developing targeted interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate gender differences in cognitive variables associated with worry, including intolerance of uncertainty, negative problem orientation, positive beliefs about worry, and cognitive avoidance.
  • To determine if cognitive variables mediate the relationship between gender and worry.

Main Methods:

  • A cross-sectional study involving 217 female and 100 male university students.
  • Administration of six questionnaires to assess worry and associated cognitive variables such as intolerance of uncertainty, negative problem orientation, positive beliefs about worry, and cognitive avoidance (thought suppression).

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Main Results:

  • Women reported higher levels of worry, particularly concerning lack of confidence, compared to men.
  • Women exhibited a more negative problem orientation and engaged in greater thought suppression (cognitive avoidance).
  • Negative problem orientation and thought suppression significantly predicted worry scores, and these cognitive factors accounted for the previously observed gender differences in worry.

Conclusions:

  • Cognitive variables, specifically negative problem orientation and thought suppression, play a significant role in explaining why women report more worry than men.
  • Interventions targeting these cognitive factors may be effective in reducing worry disparities between genders.