Gender differences in smoking cessation.

Gender differences in smoking quit rates are frequently reported and are the subject of much speculation. This study examined the generalizability of gender differences in abstinence across study sites, treatments, and time of relapse, as well as potential mediators and moderators of gender effects. Participants were smokers who participated in 3 randomized clinical trials of the nicotine patch (N?=?632). Men had higher cessation rates than women at all follow-ups. The impact of gender on abstinence was unaffected by controlling for study site, treatment. or time of relapse. There was little evidence for mediation or moderation of this relation by any of a host of predictor variables. The magnitude and consistency of the gender differential, coupled with an inability to account for it, highlights a compelling need for additional research specifically aimed at elucidating the relation between gender and abstinence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Tailoring smoking withdrawal procedures to personality and motivational differences.

Used concentrated cigarette smoke as an aversive agent in the treatment of 89 habitual cigarette smokers. A factorial design assessed the incremental efficacy of 3 procedures, hypothesized to increase treatment durability, as a function of client characteristics. The 1st, treatment focus, contrasted procedures considered optimal for internal vs external locus of control clients (measured with Rotter's Internal-External Control Scale). The 2nd, punishment, assessed an instruction to punish postclinic smoking with stimulus satiation conditions. The 3rd, timing of attitude change, presented an attitude change manipulation either before or after behavior change. The Eysenck Personality Inventory and C. S. Keutzer's effective cognitive dissonance measure were also administered. Changes in smoking behavior were monitored over a 6-mo period. 2 of the 3 treatment factors, treatment focus and timing of attitude change, interacted significantly with client characteristics in determining treatment outcome. Findings support the principle of tailoring therapeutic procedures to individual differences. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychological and pharmacological influences in cigarette smoking withdrawal: Effects of nicotine gum and expectancy on smoking withdrawal symptoms and relapse.

To determine the relative effects of expectancy and nicotine depletion on aversive withdrawal symptoms, we gave 109 smokers attempting to quit either nicotine gum or placebo within a balanced placebo design and monitored their withdrawal symptoms and smoking for 2 weeks. Subjects who believed they were getting nicotine gum reported less physical symptoms of withdrawal, showed less arousal, and smoked fewer cigarettes during the first week of quitting when compared with those who thought they were receiving placebo gum. The actual nicotine content of gum had no effect on withdrawal or relapse. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender differences in anxiety disorders and anxiety symptoms in adolescents.

Gender differences in anxiety were examined in a large sample of adolescents that included 1,079 who had never met criteria for any disorder, 95 who had recovered from an anxiety disorder, and 47 who had a current anxiety disorder. Participants were examined on a wide array of psychosocial measures. There was a preponderance of females among current and recovered anxiety disorder cases, but not among those who had never experienced an anxiety disorder. The female preponderance emerges early in life, and retrospective data indicate that at age 6, females are already twice as likely to have experienced an anxiety disorder than are males. Psychosocial variables that were correlated with both anxiety and gender were identified. Statistically controlling for these variables did not eliminate the gender differences in prevalence or anxiety symptom means. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender differences in fire fighter job stressors and symptoms of stress

This study described gender differences in fire fighter appraisal of job stressors and symptoms of stress. A sample of 670 male and 41 female fire fighters responded to an anonymous mail survey consisting of three standardized and investigator-developed questionnaires. Male and female fire fighter respondents were more similar than different on both job stressor and symptoms of stress measures. Five job stressors were ranked the most "bothersome" by both males and females during the last 10 shifts worked. These were: sleep disturbance, wage/benefit concerns, job skill concerns, substandard equipment, and safety concerns. Of these five job stress factors, only one gender difference was noted. Female fire fighters reported significantly higher scores than males on job skill concerns. Job discrimination reported by female respondents was significantly higher than for males (t = 3.51, p < .0001) even though it was not ranked among the five most stressful factors. Partial correlations computed between job stressors and symptoms of stress, while controlling for the number of years as a fire fighter, were of moderately high magnitude for both genders and similar to simple correlations computed. These results suggest that the number of years of service did not account for gender differences reported.     

Profiles in discouragement: two studies of variability in the time course of smoking withdrawal symptoms

A mouse homolog of the Drosophila Disabled (dab) gene, disabled-1 (mdab1), encodes an adaptor molecule that functions in neural development. Targeted disruption of the mdab1 gene (mdab1-1 mice) leads to anomalies in the development of the cerebrum, hippocampus, and cerebellum. Here we describe a number of histologic abnormalities in the cerebellum of the mdab1-1 mouse. There is a complete absence of foliation, and most Purkinje cells are clumped in central clusters. However, lamination appears to develop normally in areas where the Purkinje cells and external granular layer are closely apposed. The granular layer forms a thin rind over most of the cerebellar surface, but is subdivided by both transverse and parasagittal boundaries. The Purkinje cells, identified by anti-zebrin II in the adult or anti-calbindin in the new born mdab1-1 mutant cerebellum, form a parasagittal banding pattern, similar to but distorted compared with the wild-type design. The data suggest that the development of the mdab1-1 cerebellum parallels the development of reeler. The reeler gene encodes an extracellular protein (Reelin) that is secreted by the external granular layer. Because Reelin expression is retained in the mdab1-1 mutant mouse, mDab1 p80 may act in a parallel pathway or downstream of Reelin, leading to the transformation of embryonic Purkinje cell clusters into the adult parasagittal bands.     

Gender and the effects of different doses of nicotine gum on tobacco withdrawal symptoms.

Women and men were compared on the extent to which 2-mg (n?=?40), 4-mg (n?=?41), and 4-mg then 2-mg (n?=?47) nicotine gum prescribed over an 8-week period relieved cigarette withdrawal symptoms. Gender differences for nicotine gum withdrawal symptoms across doses were also examined. Results showed that women assigned to 2-mg nicotine gum experienced more severe cigarette withdrawal symptoms than those assigned to the other gum conditions. In general, no differences for nicotine gum dose in relieving cigarette withdrawal symptoms were observed in men. Women experienced more severe cigarette withdrawal symptoms than men, predominantly in the 2-mg nicotine gum condition. Women also experienced greater withdrawal symptoms from nicotine gum compared with men. For both genders, those assigned to the 4-mg nicotine gum group throughout treatment experienced more severe nicotine gum withdrawal than those assigned to the other nicotine gum conditions. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sex differences in nicotine versus nonnicotine reinforcement as determinants of tobacco smoking.

Nicotine replacement is less effective for smoking cessation in women than men. A possible explanation is that nicotine intake may be a less reinforcing consequence of tobacco smoking in women versus men, whereas nonnicotine aspects of smoking may be more reinforcing. Recent research suggests that nicotine self-administration is less robust in women, that women may reduce their smoking to a lesser degree following nicotine preloading, and that women may be less sensitive to interoceptive stimulus (or subjective) effects of nicotine. There does not seem to be a generalized insensitivity or hypersensitivity to nicotine in women. In contrast, women may be more responsive to the nonnicotine stimuli of smoking. These findings are consistent with other research indicating that women are less able than men to detect interoceptive stimuli (physiological changes). If confirmed, these sex differences could have important clinical implications; nicotine replacement may warrant a less important role in smoking cessation, whereas interventions to counter the nonnicotine aspects of smoking may need to be emphasized. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender differences in response to nicotine replacement therapy: Objective and subjective indexes of tobacco withdrawal.

K. A. Perkins (see record 1996-00322-006) recently proposed that nicotine reinforcement controls smoking to a greater degree among men than women and that consequently, nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) during smoking cessation should benefit men more than women. The authors tested this hypothesis. Polysomnographic measures of sleep and self-report indexes of tobacco withdrawal were collected pre- and postcessation from an active nicotine patch group and a placebo patch group in a randomized, double-blind clinical trial (N?=?34). Objective sleep parameters supported Perkins's hypothesis and indicated that among women, NRT may be less effective at suppressing certain withdrawal responses compared with men and may produce some iatrogenic effects. Valid and reliable self-report measures of withdrawal did not reveal gender differences in response to NRT. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender differences in acute tobacco withdrawal: Effects on subjective, cognitive, and physiological measures.

Gender differences in tobacco withdrawal are of considerable clinical importance, but research findings on this topic have been mixed. Methodological variation in samples sizes, experimental design, and measures across studies may explain the inconsistent results. The current study examined whether male (n = 101) and female (n = 102) smokers (≥15 cigarettes/day) differed in abstinence-induced changes on a battery of self-report measures (withdrawal, affect, craving), cognitive performance tasks (attention, psychomotor performance), and physiological responses (heart rate, blood pressure, brain electroencephalogram). Participants attended 2 counterbalanced laboratory sessions, 1 following 12 hr of abstinence and the other following ad libitum smoking. Results showed that women reported greater abstinence-induced increases in negative affect, withdrawal-related distress, and urge to smoke to relieve withdrawal distress. In contrast, both genders reported similar abstinence-induced changes in positive affect and urge to smoke for pleasure. Men and women exhibited generally similar abstinence-induced changes in physiological and cognitive performance measures. In addition, gender did not moderate the association between withdrawal symptoms and baseline measures of smoking behavior and dependence. Abstinence-induced changes in withdrawal distress mediated the effect of gender on latency until the 1st cigarette of the day at trend levels ( p     

Gender differences in human sepsis

Severe tricuspid valve regurgitation and decreased pulmonary blood flow in neonatal Ebstein's anomaly with pulmonary atresia, may result in cardiac respiratory failure and hypoxemia. The poor natural course and lack of standard surgical treatment make treatment for neonatal Ebstein's anomaly very difficult. The Blalock-Taussig operation was performed for hypoxemia in Ebstein's anomaly associated with pulmonary atresia and severe tricuspid regurgitation on 36th day after birth. On the 63rd day after birth, tricuspid valve orifice closure and right atrium plication (Starnes procedure) were accomplished under cardiopulmonary bypass. Heart failure became controllable and the patient condition was satisfactory at one year after surgery.     

Gender differences in mathematics.

Presents examples of disparate findings to show that it is not surprising that the debate about the magnitude of gender differences in mathematics continues in both the professional and lay communities. It is suggested that the media concludes prematurely that the mathematics performance of males is higher than females. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender differences in sexual interest

A common gender stereotype is that males are more interested than females in sex for purely physical reasons. Sociobiologists claim that this difference is biologically determined. In contrast, many sociologists and anthropologists claim that the difference is cultural. The debate about nature versus nurture regarding sexual interest has been long-standing without resolution. We propose a biosocial model that integrates data about nature and nurture to show (i) how several biological factors tilt males and females in different directions related to sexual interest, and (ii) how numerous social factors influence the way the biological tilts can be redirected in countless different ways as individuals grow up in subsets of their culture and subculture. This interactionist approach does not down-play the importance of either biological or social factors: It avoids nature-nurture debates that pit nature against nurture by showing how biological and social factors act in concert, combining their influences. The resulting work contributes to both the theoretical and practical literature, not only showing how sexology can deal with issues of nature and nurture but also providing information useful to people who are troubled about common gender differences in sexual interest.     

Gender differences in personality disorders

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to assess gender differences in personality disorders. Since heterogeneity of axis I diagnoses could introduce variability in the assessment of axis II diagnoses, the authors studied a group of patients with a primary diagnosis of major depression. METHOD: A total of 316 patients were evaluated with the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire--Revised, a self-rating measure, or the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R Personality Disorders (SCID-II), a clinician-rated instrument, or both. Axis II disorders were assessed with the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire--Revised for 288 patients with major depression. The SCID-II was administered to 117 subjects, with an additional 95 subjects receiving the SCID-II for cluster B diagnoses only. RESULTS: The mean 17-item Hamilton Depression Rating Scale scores for 108 men (mean age = 39.28 years) and 208 women (mean age = 39.11) were 19.0 (SD = 3.8) and 19.6 (SD = 6.9), respectively. Men were significantly more likely than women to meet criteria for narcissistic, antisocial, and obsessive-compulsive personality disorders as measured by the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire--Revised and for narcissistic and obsessive-compulsive personality disorders as measured by the SCID-II. CONCLUSIONS: These findings are consistent with those of previous studies showing a greater prevalence of antisocial and narcissistic personality disorders in men. In contrast with other investigations, however, neither the Personality Diagnostic Questionnaire--Revised nor the SCID-II revealed a higher prevalence of any personality disorder in women.     

Gender differences in dream perspectives

A study exploring gender differences in self-reported dream perspectives was performed with 282 college students. Significantly more of the 164 women reported dreaming exclusively in first person and more of the 114 men exclusively in third person. Also, gender differences were found for those who dreamed in mixed perspective, a combination of first- and third-person points of view. Possible reasons for these differences were suggested and further research posited.     

Gender differences in cognitive development.

The potential effect of gender on intellectual abilities remains controversial. The purpose of this research was to analyze gender differences in cognitive test performance among children from continuous age groups. For this purpose, the normative data from 7 domains of the newly developed neuropsychological test battery, the Evaluación Neuropsicológica Infantil [Child Neuropsychological Assessment] (Matute, Rosselli, Ardila, & Ostrosky-Solis, 2007), were analyzed. The sample included 788 monolingual children (350 boys, 438 girls) ages 5 to 16 years from Mexico and Colombia. Gender differences were observed in oral language (language expression and language comprehension), spatial abilities (recognition of pictures seen from different angles), and visual (Object Integration Test) and tactile perceptual tasks, with boys outperforming girls in most cases, except for the tactile tasks. Gender accounted for only a very small percentage of the variance (1%–3%). Gender × Age interactions were observed for the tactile tasks only. It was concluded that gender differences during cognitive development are minimal, appear in only a small number of tests, and account for only a low percentage of the score variance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender differences in moral reasoning.

Explored the possibility that socialization into different sex roles for men and women may contribute to the observed sex difference in moral development. 40 undergraduates were classified as either masculine, feminine, or androgynous according to the Bem Sex-Role Inventory and were administered the Moral Judgment Interview (MJI). For half the Ss, the central character in the MJI dilemmas was a male and for the remaining half, a female. Results reveal that males, when judging from the perspective of a female character, provided reasons for her actions congruent with the Stage 3 level of moral reasoning. However, for the same action portrayed by a male character, reasons for his behavior were in accord with Stage 4. No difference for the female judges was found between the characters of either sex. Regardless of the protagonist's sex, Ss scored at Stage 3. Ss' moral reasoning did not differ according to their sex-role classification. Males, however, held more strongly than females the belief that male decisions on morality are based on law-and-order reasoning, and female decisions are made from an emotional perspective. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender differences in sexual attitudes.

Developed a 102-item sexual attitudes questionnaire that was completed by 439 female and 374 male undergraduates as part of a larger attitude study. Factor analyses yielded 8 factors on which 74 of the 102 items loaded. ANOVA of the individual items showed that female and male Ss differed on 73 of the 102 items. Females were more responsible, conventional, and idealistic, whereas males were more permissive, instrumental, and control- and power-oriented. The means suggested that females were moderately conservative in sexual attitudes, while males were moderately permissive. Based on the factor analysis, the present authors formed 5 preliminary sexual attitudes scales. Correlations among the summed scale scores indicated that the scales were largely independent of each other. It is suggested that the multidimensional complexity of sexual attitudes and empirical explanations for the continuing gender differences in sexual attitudes should be studied. (47 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Gender differences in adverse drug reactions

The objective of this study is to identify gender-related differences in the types of symptoms and drugs reported to cause an adverse drug reaction. Patient data from the Sunnybrook Health Science Centre ADR Clinic for the period from April 1986 to May 1996 were reviewed. Of the 2,367 patients assessed, 74.1% were female. The mean age of the patients was 43 +/- 17 years. Drug classes most frequently reported to elicit an adverse event were general antiinfectives (60.4%), nervous system agents (21.5%), and musculoskeletal agents (3.7%). Skin-related reactions accounted for 49.0% of all reported adverse drug reactions. More than one agent was reported to be responsible for the adverse drug reaction(s) in 50% of the female patients, versus 33.1% of all male patients. Of the female patients, 47.6% were referred for skin or oral challenge testing, versus 41.6% of the male patients. Of the female patients, 6.2% tested positive to the agent compared with 6.1% of all male patients. These results support previous findings that female gender is a risk factor for the development of adverse drug reactions. Further work is required to elucidate the mechanisms explaining the differences observed between male and female patients.     

Gender differences in platelet GPIIb-IIIa activation

Gender differences in the development of thrombotic diseases have been described in numerous clinical settings. Enhanced platelet reactivity in both sexes is associated with the development of vascular thromboses. Because activation of platelet GPIIb-IIIa receptors is a central event in thrombus formation, we examined GPIIb-IIIa function in normal male and female volunteers. Using flow cytometry, we quantitated gender differences in the number of binding sites for FITC-labeled fibrinogen (FITC-FGN) and FITC-labeled PAC-1 antibody (FITC-PAC-1). Washed platelets were incubated with either FITC-FGN or FITC-PAC-1 and activated with either ADP or thrombin receptor activating peptide (TRAP) prior to cytometric acquisition of data. The dissociation constant for FITC-FGN was the same in both sexes (approx. 1.6 x 10(-7)M), however, the number of GPIIb-IIIa receptors per platelet capable of binding fibrinogen was significantly greater in women than men in response to 2 microM ADP (16,319 +/- 1871 vs 9669 +/- 1994, p = 0.02), 20 microM ADP (39,951 +/- 4711 vs 25,948 +/- 4953, p = 0.05) and 50 microM TRAP (39,236 +/- 3965 vs 21,848 +/- 4159, p = 0.007). Similarly, the number of GPIIb-IIIa receptors capable of binding PAC-1 in response to ADP and TRAP was 50% to 80% greater in women than men. Binding experiments using specific anti-GPIIb-IIIa monoclonal antibodies (P2 and 10E5), as well as quantitative Western blotting experiments, showed no gender difference in the total number of GPIIb-IIIa molecules expressed. Analysis of data from female subgroups demonstrated an association of GPIIb-IIIa reactivity with menstrual phase. We conclude that GPIIb-IIIa receptors on platelets from premenopausal women are more "activatable" than those on platelets from young men. Variations in the serum concentrations of estrogens and/or progestins may modulate GPIIb-IIIa function.