Women with high-authority jobs may have a higher risk of depression, and this is most likely related to the issue of gender discrimination, according to a new study.
A new study found women with the power to hire, fire and influence the pay of employees exhibited more symptoms of depression than men in similar positions, the American Sociological Association reported.
"Women with job authority - the ability to hire, fire, and influence pay - have significantly more symptoms of depression than women without this power," said Tetyana Pudrovska, an assistant professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Texas at Austin and the lead author of the study. "In contrast, men with job authority have fewer symptoms of depression than men without such power."
Women without job authority also exhibit more symptoms of depression than men, but the difference is much less dramatic than what is seen in those with positions of authority. To make their findings the researchers looked at 1,300 middle-aged men and 1,500 middle-aged women, who graduated from high schools in Wisconsin.
"What's striking is that women with job authority in our study are advantaged in terms of most characteristics that are strong predictors of positive mental health," Pudrovska said. "These women have more education, higher incomes, more prestigious occupations, and higher levels of job satisfaction and autonomy than women without job authority. Yet, they have worse mental health than lower-status women."
Past research suggests women in authority positions have a greater struggle with "interpersonal tension, negative social interactions, negative stereotypes, prejudice, social isolation, as well as resistance from subordinates, colleagues and superiors," Pudrovska said.
Women in leadership roles are often perceived as lacking confidence and assertiveness, but when they do display these qualities they tend to be judges as being "unfeminine." Men do not experience this effect because same negative stereotypes are not imposed on them.
"We need to address gender discrimination, hostility, and prejudice against women leaders to reduce the psychological costs and increase the psychological rewards of higher-status jobs for women," Pudrovska said.
The findings were published in a recent edition of the Journal of Health and Social Behavior.
