Depression: Being usurped in the work place and a decline in traditional male professions is likely to have a negative effect on men, experts claim. |
Men face a depressing future as their stiff upper lips start to crumble and more women become breadwinners, psychiatrists predict. They claim the changing economies of countries such as the UK and US have led to a ‘mancession’, with many men losing their jobs and fewer traditional employment opportunities. Depressive disorders among men are expected to increase in the next few years – and it could mean men’s rates of depression catch up with those of women, who are traditionally more likely to seek help. Dr Boadie Dunlop, of Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia, said: ‘Women are almost twice as likely to develop major depressive disorder in their lifetime as men. But we believe this may well change in the coming decades.’ Writing in the British Journal of Psychiatry, Dr Dunlop and his colleague Tanja Mletzko suggest two major shifts are already underway in Western societies which could increase rates of depression among men. The first change, they argue, is that society is encouraging men to discuss their feelings more and so they are no longer displaying the ‘stiff upper lip’ which stopped them from sharing their problems. At the same time, there is ‘profound restructuring’ of traditional male jobs such as manufacturing, which are being done by cheaper labour abroad or made obsolete through technological advances. Dr Dunlop said: ‘Dubbed by some the “mancession”, the economic downturn has hit men particularly hard because of its disproportionate effect on traditional male industries such as construction and manufacturing. Furthermore, Western women are increasingly becoming the primary household earners. 'Compared to women, men attach greater importance to their roles as providers and protectors of their families, and men’s failure to fulfill the role of breadwinner is associated with greater depression and marital conflict. Western men will face a difficult road in the 21st century.’ But Professor Cary Cooper, from the Lancaster University Management School, suggested that losing the stiff upper lip could improve men’s physical and mental health. He said: ‘As a generalisation, men are less emotionally intelligent than women and have not traditionally been encouraged to share their feelings. Women talk about their problems more and even though they’re more likely to be treated for depression, it doesn’t lead to poor health outcomes like heart disease. You could argue if men do become more open they may have better outcomes as a result.’ (Read by Nelly Min. Nelly Min is a journalist at the China Daily Website.) (Agencies) |
精神病學家們預測說,男人們的未來很灰暗:他們正在摒棄喜怒不形于色的形象,而且越來越多的女性成了家庭的主要經(jīng)濟支柱。 他們聲稱英國和美國等國家變化的經(jīng)濟形勢是“男性衰退”的主因,很多男人因此失業(yè)了,而且獲得傳統(tǒng)工作的機會也越來越少。 在未來幾年,患抑郁癥的男性會增加——這意味著患抑郁癥的男性比例可能會趕上女性。傳統(tǒng)上,女性更愿意為擺脫抑郁來尋求幫助。 埃默里大學醫(yī)學院的伯迪?登洛普博士說:“女性在一生中患抑郁癥的可能性幾乎是男性的兩倍。但是我們相信在未來幾十年內(nèi),這種情況很可能會改變。”埃默里大學位于佐治亞州的亞特蘭大市。 登洛普博士和他的同事坦亞?姆萊茨科在《英國精神病學》雜志上撰文稱,西方社會現(xiàn)在正在發(fā)生兩個可能會提高男性患抑郁癥風險的重大改變。 他們認為第一個改變是社會在鼓勵男性更多地談論他們的感受,這樣他們就不會為了保持 “情感不外露”的形象,而拒絕向別人傾訴他們遇到的問題。 同時,傳統(tǒng)的男性集中的行業(yè),如制造業(yè),正在經(jīng)歷著“深刻的結(jié)構(gòu)調(diào)整”:這些行業(yè)要么會雇用海外的廉價勞動力,要么已經(jīng)在科技進步中被淘汰了。 登洛普博士說:“這次經(jīng)濟危機也被某些人稱為‘男性衰退’,男性在這次經(jīng)濟衰退中遭受的打擊尤其大,因為傳統(tǒng)的男性行業(yè),如建筑業(yè)和制造業(yè)受到了很大的沖擊。另外,越來越多的西方女性開始成為家中的主要經(jīng)濟支柱。 “與女性相比,男性更注重他們家庭供養(yǎng)者和家庭保護者的角色,而如果男性沒能力養(yǎng)家糊口,這會使男性覺得抑郁,導致夫妻沖突。對于西方男性來說,21世紀的路會很難走。” 但是蘭開斯特大學管理學院的凱里?庫柏教授認為擺脫“喜怒不形于色”可以促進男性的身心健康。 他說:“一般來說,男性情商要低于女性,傳統(tǒng)上人們也并不鼓勵男性分享他們的情感。女性會更多地傾訴她們遇到的問題,雖然她們因抑郁癥接受治療的可能性更大,但至少這些不會引起心臟病等嚴重的身體疾病。因此你可以這樣認為,如果男性確實變得更加樂于傾訴,他們的健康狀況也可能會更好。” 相關(guān)閱讀 調(diào)查:3/4法國人認為女性生活質(zhì)量不及男性 (中國日報網(wǎng)英語點津 崔旭燕 編輯:陳丹妮) |
Vocabulary: stiff upper lip: (面對痛苦或困境)不動聲色,沉著而不外露 dub: to give somebody/something a particular name, often in a humorous or critical way(把……戲稱為;給……起綽號) |