Men's sexual orientation and beliefs about masculinity are linked to their psychotherapy use

What is it about?

By means of an online survey, 728 German-speaking men who reported to experience mental health problems were examined. Men who self-identified as heterosexual were about 40% less likely to use psychotherapy as compared to men who self-identified as non-heterosexual. Additionally, strong traditional beliefs about masculinity (for example, that men should be physically strong or be in control of their feelings) were also linked to reduced psychotherapy use. Furthermore, heterosexual-identified men who endorse such traditional beliefs about masculinity were much more likely to exhibit externalizing forms of depressive symptoms (for example, substance abuse or riskful behavior) rather than prototypical depressive symptoms (such as, depressive mood or anhedonia). Externalizing depressive symptoms, on the other hand, have been previously linked to increased suicide among men.

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Photo by Vinicius "amnx" Amano on Unsplash

Photo by Vinicius "amnx" Amano on Unsplash

Why is it important?

This study highlights factors that may be particularly detrimental to the psychological and physical well-being of heterosexual-identified men with traditional beliefs about masculinity. Thus, advocating alternative forms of masculinity that include health promoting behavior may greatly benefit these men. Health care policies should specifically target these men to increase psychotherapy uptake among men with mental health problems.