Gender Differences in Depressive Cognition

Women are twice as likely as men to become depressed. One contributor to this gender difference in depression may be gender differences in the tendency to become mired in a ruminative pattern of thinking. In previous work, we have shown that women are more likely than men to ruminate about sadness or anxiety-producing events, and in turn, this gender difference in rumination mediates the gender difference in depression.

In ongoing work, we are exploring the sources of the gender differences in rumination. We have found that greater rates of past trauma and chronic uncontrollable stress in women’s lives, compared to men’s, help to explain the gender differences in rumination. We are also interested in how the socialization of girls and women contributes to a passive, ruminative, style of coping.

Representative publications:

Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (2003). Women Who Think Too Much: How To Break Free of Overthinking and Reclaim Your Life. New York: Holt.

Twenge,J.M., & Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (2002). Age, gender, race, SES, and birth cohort differences on the Children’s Depression Inventory: A meta-analysis. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 111, 578-588.

Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (2001). Gender differences in depression. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 10, 173-176. Reprinted in T.S. Oltmanns & R.E. Emery (In Press) (Eds.), Abnormal Psychology Reader. (pp. 49-55). New York: Prentice Hall.

Nolen-Hoeksema, S., & Jackson, B. (2001). Mediators of the gender difference in rumination. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 25, 37-47.

Nolen-Hoeksema, S., Larson, J., & Grayson, C. (1999). Explaining the gender difference in depressive symptoms. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 77, 1061-1072.

Nolen-Hoeksema, S., & Girgus, J.S. (1994). The emergence of gender differences in depression in adolescence. Psychological Bulletin, 115, 424-443.

Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (1987). Sex differences in unipolar depression: Evidence and theory. Psychological Bulletin, 101, 259-282. Reprinted in J.M. Hooley, J.M. Neale, & G.C. Davison (Eds.), Readings in Abnormal Psychology. NY: Wiley, 1989; and in C.N. Jacklin (Ed.), International Library of Critical Writings in Psychology. London: Edward Elgar Publishing, 1992.

Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (1990). Sex Differences in Depression. Stanford , CA : Stanford University Press.