Women in leadership positions are more likely to experience symptoms of depression.

At the same time, leadership reduces the risk of depression in men..

These are the results of a new study published in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior..

A team of scientists from the Department of Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin, led by Tetyana Pudrovska, came to this conclusion after analyzing data from the Wisconsin Longitudinal Study for 1957-2004, which included more than 1,300 men and 1,500 women.. In 1993, when the study participants were about 54 years old, researchers recorded their job titles and followed them for 11 years for symptoms of depression..

Commenting on the results of her work, Pudrovskaya says: “A woman who has power at work — the power to hire, fire and change wages — has significantly more symptoms of depression compared to a woman who does not have such power.”.

Pudrovskaya and her collaborators found that men tend to associate leadership positions with a lower risk of depressive symptoms.. If we compare male leaders and female leaders, then the latter psychologically endure this work harder..

Researchers say that women in leadership positions, in general, have more positive factors affecting mental health, which is interesting: “These women are more educated, have higher incomes, more prestigious jobs and high levels of job satisfaction, as well as. However, with all these favorable factors, they have the worst psychological state.”.

Women leaders are more likely to face prejudice at work.

Discussing the potential mechanisms behind the identified link, Pudrovskaya says early research has shown female leaders to be prone to stress.. This hypothesis is partly supported by a study that was recently published in Medical News Today.. The authors of this study stated that women in risky situations in the workplace experience higher levels of stress than men..

Both this study and Pudroska's latest work suggest that women leaders at work are more likely to face prejudice and resistance from employees.. Men in leadership positions, scientists say, “look more natural” and do not cause such a reaction from colleagues.

Explaining the results, Pudrovskaya continues: “Women in leadership positions are viewed as lacking confidence and strength as leaders.. But when these women demonstrate leadership qualities, they are again judged negatively, calling them not feminine enough..

This attitude leads to chronic stress.. Men in leadership positions are initially perceived better, their leadership is considered normal and legitimate. This increases the power of the male leader and reduces the level of interpersonal conflict..

Based on her findings, Pudrovskaya states that bias and hostility towards female leaders should be addressed in order to “reduce the psychological cost and increase the psychological reward” for women with this status..

medbe. en.