DROP IN MEN IN MENTAL-HEALTH FIELDS IS BAD FOR EVERYONE

Techniques for more women in science and technology could be adapted

The proportion of male psychologists in North America has been slashed from about 70 per cent to 20 per cent in the past five decades. A similar precipitous decline in the proportion of men has hit social work, an even bigger mental-health field.

Since boys and men are less inclined than females to seek professional support, the shortage of male mental health care providers, which runs across the U.S. and Canada, further alienates them from seeking psychological backup.

The disappearance of males from psychology, social work, school counselling and other so-called helping professions is not only hurting vulnerable men and boys. It's hurting the women and girls who love them and wish the best for them.

Why the drastic decline? What impact does the lack of males in the helping professions have on men and boys, especially the many struggling with suicidal thoughts, anxiety and addiction? Why aren't there more males in psychology, social work and counselling, not to mention teacher-training programs?

These questions receive little attention in North America. That's despite the conspicuous efforts in recent decades to successfully increase the number of women in medicine, science, technology, engineering, business and law.

There is limited curiosity about why only one in five psychologists and social workers in the U.S. are male, including why only a fragment of them are men of colour.

This is not just a U.S. problem. Data from the B.C. College of Psychologists show 72 per cent of its registered members are female, 28 per cent are male and one per cent are nonbinary. That compares to 67 per cent being male in 2004. When it comes to the youngest cohort of psychologists in B.C., nine of 10 are female.

There is no doubt many North American girls and women are suffering and need support. And there is no question that many patients, regardless of gender, can and do benefit from female, male or nonbinary therapists. But that's not the end of the discussion.

While girls and females statistically tend to struggle most with depression and anxiety, boys and men are inclined to be overwhelmed by addiction and four times more likely to die from suicide.

No one gains when another barrier goes up against robust mental health. The disappearing-male-therapist phenomenon goes against the grain of a culture that purports to be devoted to gender diversity and equality of opportunity.

In Canada, the proportion of young men who say their mental health is good has declined by 15 percentage points in two decades, report psychology professors Jonathan Haidt and Zach Rausch. Now one out of three young males report they're not doing well.

“The cratering share of men working in mental health is bad for boys and men, bad for the professions, and bad for society,” said Richard Reeves, founder of the American Institute for Boys and Men, in a recent post on X, which unveiled new research into the gender gap.

Boys and men are much less likely to receive treatment for mental-health conditions, according to Reeves, author of the book Of Boys and Men. In 2022, 27 per cent of women reported receiving mental-health treatment in the previous 12 months, compared to only 16 per cent of men.

“The policy challenge is clear: we must lower the barriers for boys and men accessing mental health care,” says an American Institute for Boys and Men report by Will Secker and Alanna Williams.

While there has been little research into the field's lopsided gender representation, studies suggest it's important that boys and men think mental health support is just as appropriate for themselves as for girls and women.

“Male and female practitioners may have distinct approaches and techniques that may appeal differently to clients,” say Secker and Williams. “Having men in the profession presents options that may be helpful and encourage men to seek help.”

Just as it makes sense to try to get more people of colour into therapy roles, gender diversity is also needed since “males and females, either through nature or nurture, often view the world differently.”

As Daniel Ellenberg, a former American Psychological Association director, said, sometimes guys just need to talk to guys, particularly about shaming and triggering subjects such as the use of pornography.

UBC psychiatry professor John Ogrodniczuk is part of a team studying whether patients favour certain therapists.

“For some men, not having an option to see a male therapist could very well serve as a big barrier to reaching out for help. For such men, they might feel that a female therapist won't understand their experiences as a man,” says Ogrodniczuk, director of UBC'S department of psychiatry and founder of Headsup, which focuses on mental health and suicide prevention for men.

One study of Australian men, in which Ogrodniczuk participated, found 60 per cent didn't have a preference in regard to the gender of a therapist. But 20 per cent preferred a male therapist and a similar proportion preferred a female. Given scant research, Ogrodniczuk says we still have a lot to learn.

“I think one of the biggest benefits of a man seeing a male therapist is creating an opportunity for the man to learn to be vulnerable with, and cared for, by another man. This is quite transformative for many men.”

What's the way forward? Reeves suggests that techniques used to attract more women to science and technology fields could be adapted to offer male-friendly recruitment messages to males. It's worked to a modest degree in U.S. nursing.

Secker and Williams say just letting men know there are jobs for them in the growing field can be useful, as can male role models. There may be particular promise in encouraging men in their later lives to choose mental health as a career.

“The truth is that very little is known about what might work to attract more men into these fields, but very little has been tried, let alone evaluated,” say Secker and Williams. “Indeed the extent of the decline in the male share of mental health professionals is not even widely understood.”

At the least, however, it's clear there is a need to encourage more men to become providers of mental health care.