Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 20, 2026

Social Defeat Stress Model for Adolescent C57BL/6 Male and Female Mice
Published on: March 15, 2024
Adolescent gender-role identity and mental health: gender intensification revisited
Heather A Priess1, Sara M Lindberg, Janet Shibley Hyde
1University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Winsconsin, USA. hapriess@wisc.edu
Abstract:
Gender intensification, an increased pressure for adolescents to conform to culturally sanctioned gender roles, has been posited as an explanation for the emergence of the gender difference in depression. This longitudinal study assessed whether 410 individuals became more stereotypical in their gender-role identity across adolescence and whether such patterns predicted depressive symptoms. Girls reported higher femininity than boys at ages 11, 13, and 15, but girls and boys did not differ in masculinity. Contrary to prevailing views, there was not evidence of intensification in femininity or masculinity. Positive trajectories in masculinity for both girls and boys predicted fewer depressive symptoms, particularly at moderate levels of stress. Findings suggest a need to reconceptualize gender intensification in ways that characterize contemporary adolescence.
Related Concept Videos
Socioemotional Experience and Gender Development
Ethnic Identity within a Larger Culture
Erikson's Theory on Socioemotional Development during Adolescence
Social Identity
Sources of Self-Esteem I: Family Experience
Self-Evaluation: Self-Enhancement and Self-Verification

