Traditionalism vs egalitarianism: Is there an association between gender attitudes and mental health?

OBJECTIVE

This study sought to assess the extent to which gender attitudes are associated with mental health among Australian men and women.

METHODS

This study used a sample of 26,188 individuals drawn from five waves of the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia Survey. Gender attitudes were classified into three groups (traditional, moderate-egalitarian and egalitarian), and were constructed from six items. Mental health was measured using the Mental Health Inventory (MHI-5). We calculated the magnitude of associations between gender attitudes and mental health, stratified by gender, and adjusted for potential confounding.

RESULTS

Compared to men with egalitarian attitudes, poorer mental health was observed among men with moderate-egalitarian (-1.16, 95% confidence interval = [-1.84, -0.49]) and traditional gender attitudes (-2.57, 95% confidence interval = [-3.33, -1.81]). Among women, poorer mental health was observed among those with moderate-egalitarian (-0.78, 95% confidence interval = [-1.34, -0.22]) and traditional attitudes (-1.91, 95% confidence interval = [-2.55, -1.26]) compared to those with egalitarian attitudes.

CONCLUSIONS

For both men and women, egalitarian gender attitudes were associated with better mental health.