| dc.description.abstract | The present study investigates the silencing the self theory (STS, Jack, 1991) which proposes that
more women than men are depressed (Benazzi, 2000) because of their greater tendency to self-silence
in relationships to preserve harmony and to adhere to the traditional female role. The
silencing the self theory as a model of depression in women suggests that the standards of
behaviour, which are informed by culture, ethnicity, family, and situational context, are
internalized as moral precepts for appropriate female behaviour and responsibilities within
relationships. These influence the cognitive schemas of some women such that they silence certain
aspects of themselves in favour of the relationship and of others. Particularly when women
perceive that there is little choice in their situation or when their relationship efforts are not
reciprocated, their self-silencing activities contribute to lower self-esteem, greater self-negation,
and a sense of the loss of self, resulting in a divided self that is outwardly compliant but inwardly
angry. This leads to occasional anger outbursts and displacement and eventually to increased
vulnerability for depression as the relationship further deteriorates. Although men have been
found to self-silence more than women, the link between self-silencing and depression in women
is stronger (Thompson, 1995) suggesting that self-silencing might hold different meanings for the
two sexes. The present study used quantitative and qualitative paradigms to investigate (a)
relationships among self-silencing, anger suppression, anger expression, and depression and the
differences between women and men, and (b) sex differences in the meaning of self-silencing
among high self-silencers. Results showed that compared to men, women were more depressed,
and more active in their silencing to attain and maintain harmony within their relationships than
men. However, the consequences of silencing within one’s intimate relationship advanced by the STS model (self-silencing, anger suppression, divided self, then depression) were not upheld as
unique to women. Only the tendency to judge the self by external standards predicted depression
in both sexes with no significant sex difference. The qualitative findings strongly suggested that
self-silencing in men is not for the purpose of control or maintaining power in favour of the man
within the relationship. However, the findings did support the idea that silencing in men is an
avoidance or withdrawal behaviour that may have unintended detrimental consequences for the
relationship and for the individual man. Overall this study did not support the silencing the self
theoiy as a gender specific or uniquely female pathway to depression for women. | |
