Impact of gender discrimination on young Indian women’s mental health: do benevolent childhood experiences play any role?
| Date | 21 November 2023 |
| Pages | 857-868 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/MHSI-09-2023-0104 |
| Published date | 21 November 2023 |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care,Mental health,Social inclusion |
| Author | Bhoomika N. Jadhav,P. Padma Sri Lekha,E.P. Abdul Azeez,Jyoti Sharma,Archana Yadav,Mufina Begam J. |
Impact of gender discrimination on young
Indian women’s mental health: do
benevolent childhood experiences play
any role?
Bhoomika N. Jadhav, P. Padma Sri Lekha, E.P. Abdul Azeez, Jyoti Sharma, Archana Yadav
and Mufina Begam J.
Abstract
Purpose –Gender discrimination exists in various settings globally and harms women’s mental
health. This study aims to understand the impact of gender discrimination on hopelessness
and emotional vulnerability. Further, we attempted to determine whether benevolent childhood
experiences (BCEs) moderate the relationships of gender discrimination with hopelessness and
emotional vulnerability.
Design/methodology/approach –Data from 445 young womenfrom India was gathered from a cross-
sectional survey. Measures included gender discrimination inventory, Beck’s hopelessness inventory,
emotionalvulnerability scale and BCE scale.
Findings –Results yieldeda significant positive association of gender discriminationwith hopelessness
and emotional vulnerability. BCEs were negatively related to hopelessness, emotional vulnerabilityand
gender discrimination.Further, gender discriminationpredicted increased feelings of hopelessnessand
emotionalvulnerability. However, BCEsdo not neutralize the effect of genderdiscrimination.
Social implications –It is evident from this study that gender discrimination exists independent of
socioeconomic class, domicile and educational qualification, taking a toll on women’s well-being and
mental health. Incorporatingattitudinal changes at the community and societal levelin reducing gender
norms responsible for negative outcomes will allow women to function to their full capacity and
experienceimproved mental health.
Originality/value –The research on gender discrimination and its impact on women’s mental health is
limited, especiallyexploring the role of BCEs. Previous studies haveindicated that BCEs have protective
roles in neutralizing adversities. However, the present study uniquely contributes to establishing the
limited role of BCEs in the context of gender discrimination, though it contributes to mentalhealth. The
policy andpsychosocial implications ofthe study are discussed.
Keywords Gender discrimination, Hopelessness, Emotional vulnerability,
Benevolent childhood experiences, Women’s mental health, India
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Gender discrimination is a very prevalent phenomenon across the globe. This could be
overtly observed in many forms in various settings and is rooted in the preconceptions of
the individuals in society (Ely and Padavic, 2020). Gender discrimination leads to unequal
opportunities in various areas of life and plays a significant role in the global gender gap
due to the underrepresentation of women (Global Gender Gap Report, 2022). The
construction of women as weak, fragile and dependent leads to gender discrimination
Bhoomika N. Jadhav,
P. Padma Sri Lekha,
E.P. Abdul Azeez and Jyoti
Sharma are all based at the
School of Social Sciences
and Languages, Vellore
Institute of Technology,
Vellore, India.
Archana Yadav is based at
the Department of Social
Work, Guru Ghasidas
University, Bilaspur, India.
Mufina Begam J. is based
at the School of Social
Sciences and Languages,
Vellore Institute of
Technology, Vellore, India.
Conflict of interest: All authors
declare that they have no con-
flicts of interest.
Data availability statement: The
data supporting this study’s
findings are available on
reasonable request from the
corresponding author.
Since submission of this article,
the following author has
updated their affiliation: Jyoti
Sharma is also at the Chitkara
School of Psychology and
Counselling, Chitkara
University, Rajpura, India.
DOI 10.1108/MHSI-09-2023-0104 VOL. 28 NO. 5 2024, pp. 857-868, ©Emerald Publishing Limited, ISSN 2042-8308 jMENTAL HEALTH AND SOCIAL INCLUSION jPAGE 857
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