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. 2021 Jan;11(1):e01934.
doi: 10.1002/brb3.1934. Epub 2020 Dec 11.

Gender differences in emotional response to the COVID-19 outbreak in Spain

Lorena García-Fernández  1   2   3 , Verónica Romero-Ferreiro  3   4   5 , Sergio Padilla  1   6 , Pedro David López-Roldán  2 , María Monzó-García  2 , Roberto Rodriguez-Jimenez  3   5   7
Affiliations

Gender differences in emotional response to the COVID-19 outbreak in Spain

Lorena García-Fernández et al. Brain Behav. 2021 Jan.

Abstract

Objective: We aim to explore the differential presence of symptoms of anxiety, depression, and acute stress between men and women during the COVID-19 outbreak, and to study the relationship between these symptoms and two environmental variables, coexistence, and violence.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study starting on March 29 to April 5, 2020, based on a national online survey using snowball sampling techniques. Symptoms of anxiety (Hamilton Anxiety Scale), depression (Beck Depression Inventory), and acute stress (Acute Stress Disorder Inventory) were assessed. Differences in the presence of symptoms and the relationship of coexistence and domestic violence were evaluated from a gender perspective.

Results: Men showed significant lower mean (SD) in anxiety, depression, and acute stress levels than women [HARS, 14.1 (9.8) versus. 18.4 (10.2), F = 56.2, p < .001; BDI 3.4 (3.9) versus 4.5 (4.3), F = 16.6, p < .001, and ASDI 3.6 (2.9) versus 4.7 (3.1), F = 39.0, p < .001, respectively), as well as a weaker depressive syndrome (28.1% males versus 39.9% females, χ2 = 25.5, p < .001). In addition, an interaction Gender × Coexistence was found in anxiety (F = 56.2, p < .001) and acute stress (F = 3.52, p = .06) and, according to depressive symptoms, an interaction Gender × Violence was found marginally significant (F = 3.3, p = .07).

Conclusions: Findings indicate that women present greater severity in symptoms of anxiety, depression, and acute stress. Moreover, loneliness and violence specifically worsen the emotional state in women. These results can undoubtedly guide better healthcare planning adopting a gender perspective.

Keywords: COVID-19; acute stress; anxiety; depression; gender differences.

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Conflict of interest statement

Dr. R. Rodriguez‐Jimenez has been a consultant for, spoken in activities of, or received grants from Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria (FIS), Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Madrid Regional Government (S2010/ BMD‐2422 AGES; S2017/BMD‐3740), JanssenCilag, Lundbeck, Otsuka, Pfizer, Ferrer, Juste, Takeda, Exeltis, Angelini, and Casen‐Recordati. All other authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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