Gender Differences in Psychological Distress during the Transition to Early Adolescence

Previous research consistently points to significantly different levels of psychological distress between women and men, with women being more at risk of experiencing anxiety disorders and depression than men and suffering more adverse consequences. However, most of the extant literature is narrowed to psychological distress in adulthood, which leaves it unclear if gender-based biases might emerge much earlier in life. In our study, we hypothesize that the onset of gender disparities in psychological distress can be traced back to the sensitive period of the transition into early adolescence as part of a broader process of gendered socialization. Based on data from the 2021 edition of the Survey of Subjective Well-being of Children in Barcelona (N=3,699), we used the Blinder‑Oaxaca decomposition method to investigate possible causes of diverging levels of distress between young boys and girls at ages 10 to 12. In line with our initial expectation, the mean predicted psychological distress in our sample is significantly higher among young girls compared to their male counterparts. Our results suggest that body dissatisfaction is the discriminant factor contributing the most to the girl-boy disparity in distress levels. Social support, which is often recognized as a protective factor against distress, also acts differently according to the respondents’ sex. In fact, the perceived lack of instrumental support from the parents seems to play only a marginal role in females’ psychological distress, as they are more emancipated and more reliant on peers’ networks at that age compared to males. In contrast, young girls who feel left out in decision-making about things that are important for their lives score significantly higher in psychological distress than young boys. Findings from our study disclose the complexity of gender identity formation, thus supporting a holistic approach to promoting healthy adolescent development from a gender perspective.