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Gender bias in psychiatric texts.
1Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, State University of New York at Buffalo Erie County Medical Center, 462 Grider Street, Buffalo, New York, 14215, USA.
Summary
Introductory psychiatric textbooks show gender bias, featuring significantly more male than female subjects in case vignettes. This imbalance persists across multiple editions of diagnostic manuals, impacting medical training.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Psychiatry
- Gender Studies
Background:
- Previous research identified gender bias in medical textbooks, with more male than female models.
- This bias raises concerns about the messages conveyed to medical trainees regarding patient care.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess introductory psychiatric texts for gender bias using case vignettes.
- To examine longitudinal trends in gender representation within diagnostic manuals.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of five introductory psychiatric textbooks commonly used by medical students.
- Frequency count of male versus female subjects in case vignettes.
- Review of three editions of the DSM Casebooks for longitudinal gender trends.
Main Results:
- A significant predominance of male subjects in case vignettes across the five texts combined.
- Three of the five texts individually showed significant gender disparities.
- All three reviewed versions of the DSM Casebooks maintained a significant male subject predominance.
Conclusions:
- Introductory psychiatric texts exhibit gender bias, with male subjects disproportionately represented in case vignettes.
- This bias is not explained by disorder prevalence and contradicts psychiatric service utilization trends.
- The findings highlight potential negative impacts of gender bias on medical trainees' understanding of patient care.
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