“The Pain behind the Mask”: Masculine Depression and Gender Stereotypes in the Chilean Context

In Chile, depression affects silently almost a fifth of the population, causing havoc in all areas of daily life to those who are directly and indirectly involved with it. According to official data from MINSAL (2013) only 8.5% of men in comparison with 25.7% of women were diagnosed with depression. Without a doubt, and especially in the Latin American context, factors that are associated with the diagnosis of depression are closely related to the sociocultural constructions of gender roles. The social pressure exerted on men to avoid all femininity can lead them to consider stereotypically feminine diagnoses of mental health as especially aversive. The present study implemented mixed methods design, in the first place, we conducted a quantitative study among students and adults (N = 220), subsequently we performed interviews with informative sampling in order to explain variations in outcomes (10 interviews with students and 6 with adults). Our results confirmed that, at a quantitative level there were no particular difference between the levels of depression between men and women. More importantly, the differences were found in relation to the way they experienced and expressed depressive symptomatology, and the evaluation they made about people suffering a depression. Additionally, in the case of men (both young and adult), the self-stigmatization, predicted more negative attitudes towards psychological help seeking and emotional expression. These findings coincide with the thesis that men see psychological disorders in general, and perhaps female disorders in particular, as challenges for their status and gender role.