What is the role of gender in perceived coercion during psychiatric admission?

This paper explores factors linking gender with increased perceived coercion, perceived negative pressures and procedural injustice during psychiatric admission.

We used validated tools to perform detailed assessments of 107 adult psychiatry inpatients admitted to acute psychiatry admission units at two general hospitals in Dublin, Ireland, between September 2017 and February 2020.

Among female inpatients (n = 48), perceived coercion on admission was associated with younger age and involuntary status; perceived negative pressures were associated with younger age, involuntary status, seclusion, and positive symptoms of schizophrenia; and procedural injustice was associated with younger age, involuntary status, fewer negative symptoms of schizophrenia, and cognitive impairment. Among females, restraint was not associated with perceived coercion on admission, perceived negative pressures, procedural injustice, or negative affective reactions to hospitalisation; seclusion was associated with negative pressures only. Among male inpatients (n = 59), not being born in Ireland appeared more relevant than age, and neither restraint nor seclusion were associated with perceived coercion on admission, perceived negative pressures, procedural injustice, or negative affective reactions to hospitalisation.

Factors other than formal coercive practices are primarily linked with perceived coercion. Among female inpatients, these include younger age, involuntary status, and positive symptoms. Among males, not being born in Ireland appears more relevant than age. Further research is needed on these correlations, along with gender-aware interventions to minimise coercive practices and their consequences among all patients.