Gender as a risk factor in minor psychiatric morbidity in the United Kingdom

Abstract

Previous research has found consistent differences in psychiatric morbidity for men and women across continents. The current research focuses on rates of minor psychiatric morbidity (MPM) across the United Kingdom for the first time, examining gender and exploring region as influencing factors in prevalence rates. We found that while there was no influence of region on psychiatric health, women had significantly higher mean GHQ-12 scores, and thus poorer mental health, than men across the UK (t=12.77, p<.001). We discuss this finding in the context of debates which point to biological, psychosocial and sociocultural factors explaining differences in symptom prevalence and outline the impact the UK results have in handling MPM in clinical and national health settings.