Gender differences in psychological impairment after a coronary incident

• Published in: Personality and individual differences 2001-01, Vol.30 (1), p.127-135
• Main Authors: Brezinka, Veronika, Maes, Stan, Dusseldorp, Elise
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; Coronary heart disease; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gender differences; Gender-specific norms; Heart attacks; Illness and personality; Personality, behavior and health; Psychological functioning; Psychological impairment; Psychology and medicine; Psychology. Psychoanalysis. Psychiatry; Psychology. Psychophysiology; Women
• ISSN: 0191-8869; 1873-3549
• DOI: 10.1016/S0191-8869(00)00016-7

The goal of this study was to determine in 231 coronary patients (109 men, 122 women) which variables of psychological impairment were most discriminating between the sexes at 5 weeks, 4 months, and 18 months after a coronary incident, and whether using absolute scores or clinical levels of psychological impairment might have an impact on the results. Hierarchical logistic regression analyses were performed both for absolute scores and clinical levels. Using absolute scores, women seemed more impaired than men at every measurement. However, comparing clinical levels of psychological impairment yielded a more differentiated picture. While more women than men reached clinical levels on some variables of psychological impairment (vital exhaustion, social inhibition, and anxiety), more men than women displayed clinical levels on other variables (agoraphobia, depression, and hostility). In contrast to previous research, women did not show consistently higher levels of psychological impairment than men after a coronary incident. It should be noted, however, that these previous studies did not make use of gender-specific norms to assess psychological impairment.