Why do women have increased risk of PTSD?

TL;DR

Women are two times more likely to develop PTSD due to factors such as social support, defense coping behavior, trauma exposure, appraisals, and biological responses.

Transcript

hello everyone welcome back and if you haven't been in before my name is ava and i'm a phd student from ucl unfortunately we are going to be describing this in terms of a more binary measure of gender differences which obviously might exclude some groups and that's just because most of research does look at it from a binary overview of gender hopef... Read More

Key Insights

• 🍻 The neuroendocrine response to stress, particularly alterations in the sympathetic adrenal medullary and HPA axis, is linked to PTSD development.
• 🧑‍🏭 Gender differences in appraisals and psychological factors can affect the biological response to stress.
• 🤕 Factors such as age of trauma exposure, history of traumatization, and cognitive appraisals contribute to the gender differences in PTSD rates.

Questions & Answers

Q: Why are women more likely to develop PTSD than men?

Women may be more susceptible to PTSD due to greater exposure to specific trauma types, such as interpersonal assaults like rape or sexual abuse during childhood or adolescence.

Q: Does prior traumatization contribute to the gender difference in PTSD rates?

Studies suggest that prior traumatization does not significantly contribute to the gender difference in PTSD rates. However, previous anxiety or depression may moderate the relationship between being female and experiencing higher rates of PTSD.

Q: How does cognitive appraisal impact PTSD development?

Cognitive factors play a critical role in trauma response. Women tend to show more appraisals relating to loss and threats compared to men, which have been linked to higher rates of affective disorders. These appraisal differences may impact the activation of the HPA axis and contribute to gender differences in PTSD risk.

Q: How do gender and trauma exposure relate to PTSD development?

Despite lower prevalence of trauma exposure, women are more susceptible to PTSD. This may be due to a greater exposure to specific trauma types, particularly interpersonal assaults. Specific trauma types, such as sexual traumas, may make individuals more susceptible to developing PTSD.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Men are at a higher risk of being exposed to trauma, but women are more likely to develop PTSD.

• Gender differences in PTSD may be influenced by social support, defense coping behavior, trauma exposure, appraisals, and biological factors such as the neuroendocrine response.

• Women are more susceptible to certain trauma types, such as interpersonal assaults, and may have higher rates of appraisals related to loss and threats.