Women's Physical Pain Is Not Taken Seriously, Study Says

Why is women's pain often not taken seriously even though they are obviously suffering?

A psychology study, entitled "Gender biases in estimation of others' pain" and published in the Journal of Pain, reveals that women's pain is underestimated compared to men despite displaying similar levels of suffering based on their facial expressions.

In other words, physical pain among women is not taken seriously. Men, on the other hand, have easier access to treatment as they were more likely to be referred to one. But women are assumed to be exaggerating their pain and so their facial expressions of pain are dismissed as a valid measure of suffering.

Women's Pain Often Dismissed As Psychological

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), chronic pain is more prevalent among women than men because they have fewer opioid receptors in the brains coupled with hormonal differences in their bodies.

Despite that, men's pain is more taken seriously and they dominate most chronic pain diagnoses. This is because women's pain is often dismissed as merely psychological, Shondaland reported.

A 2018 study published in Pain Research and Management entitled " "Brave Men" and "Emotional Women": A Theory-Guided Literature Review on Gender Bias in Health Care and Gendered Norms towards Patients with Chronic Pain" found that doctors often describe women as "malingerers" or those who fake their disorder to gain a reward or avoid something.

But a review in 2009 suggests that women feel the most common types of pain, such as postoperative and procedural pain, musculoskeletal and mouth and facial pain, fibromyalgia, migraine, and abdominal and pelvic pain.

Also, a 2012 study by researchers at Stanford University, entitled "Sex differences in reported pain across 11,000 patients captured in electronic medical records," revealed that women experience pain more acutely and intensely than men, most especially women of color.

So, why does women's pain are often dismissed as psychological and not taken seriously?

Gender Bias in Describing Pain

The new study reveals the gender biases in the medical system leading to female pain being underestimated. Although facial expressions tend to be a valid predictor of pain, previous studies said it can still carry a gender bias.

Often, women are thought to be exaggerating their suffering, while men are assumed to be more stoic and therefore have a higher tolerance for agony. But neither of these two is trustworthy.

This has led to a contradictory of results in many studies. For example, female patients in some studies are judged as being in more pain as they are more likely to report and show signs of illnesses compared to men.

On the other hand, some studies show that female patients are only exaggerating their pain and so their expressions are dismissed as valid predictors of their suffering.

ScienceAlert reported that gender bias about facial expressions might very well play a role in this discrepancy, especially when both men and women have similar facial expressions.

Moreso, gender role expectations can create an obstacle to treating pain as it labels what gender is most likely to endure pain and are willing to report pain.

"The average participant shows reasonably strong gender bias and that other factors such as additional pain stereotypes, or perceptual biases likely contribute to this bias", the researchers wrote.

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