Why do you think girls are 3 times more likely to be severely depressed than boys?

I think there are a few points here that could contribute to this large difference. Firstly, the study shows how many 12 to 17 year olds show signs of/or have admitted to a major depressive episode. Males are generally better at hiding their feelings and often give the impression there is not much of a problem there. Other studies have been done that back up this point that males are less likely to dwell on illness and put up a macho front that there is no problem.

Just as importantly, if not more so the pressure on teenage girls entering society these days is greater than ever. Socially, their image above all is ever more becoming seen as the single defining characteristic of their suitability as a mate. Cardboard cutout celebrities look a certain way [most people cannot compete with their over glamourised image]. Models are routinely photoshopped to look better than reality. Anorexia and obesity have reached record levels. Television shows portray idealic characters in idealic scenarios which chip away and evolve our sense of status quo and our impression of how others[society] would judge us. In this sense 'society' is an illusion of the mind, but to some extent a collective one. Girls are competing to new levels to be the belle of the ball.. and at ever younger ages too. I think we all know the story really..

All in all its quite a worrying trend which unless it reverses will manifest ever greater problems. On a positive note, according to Nietzsche, any virtues left ignored for a period of time tend to resurge stronger. I just hope that there will be some influential leaders for the kids to look up to that can help reshape their impression of society and reestablish the importance of substance over style. I think there are such people out ther, but our media doesnt seem to be able to make enough money promoting them. And whos to blame for that? I think we all deserve a tiny sliver of humble pie.

I think there are a few points here that could contribute to this large difference. Firstly, the study shows how many 12 to 17 year olds show signs of/or have admitted to a major depressive episode. Males are generally better at hiding their feelings and often give the impression there is not much of a problem there. Other studies have been done that back up this point that males are less likely to dwell on illness and put up a macho front that there is no problem.

Just as importantly, if not more so the pressure on teenage girls entering society these days is greater than ever. Socially, their image above all is ever more becoming seen as the single defining characteristic of their suitability as a mate. Cardboard cutout celebrities look a certain way [most people cannot compete with their over glamourised image]. Models are routinely photoshopped to look better than reality. Anorexia and obesity have reached record levels. Television shows portray idealic characters in idealic scenarios which chip away and evolve our sense of status quo and our impression of how others[society] would judge us. In this sense 'society' is an illusion of the mind, but to some extent a collective one. Girls are competing to new levels to be the belle of the ball.. and at ever younger ages too. I think we all know the story really..

All in all its quite a worrying trend which unless it reverses will manifest ever greater problems. On a positive note, according to Nietzsche, any virtues left ignored for a period of time tend to resurge stronger. I just hope that there will be some influential leaders for the kids to look up to that can help reshape their impression of society and reestablish the importance of substance over style. I think there are such people out ther, but our media doesnt seem to be able to make enough money promoting them. And whos to blame for that? I think we all deserve a tiny sliver of humble pie.

Girls / women think with their entire brain and process a lot more data than boys / men do. There is nothing against boys in this, it is simply that physiologically sex crosses their minds every 12 - 17 seconds and that is a hinderence. However, it would appear that it is also a benefit because these short interludes keep the mind from the deeper thoughts that women travel. It is not easy to be a person who analyzes every aspect all the time, but that is what women do.

The depression can occur due to hormone changes, misunderstandings, depth of emotions.

Nothing to belittle guys; it takes guys longer to catch up in maturity to girls.

Perhaps males in general do not ask for help in the same numbers as females, at any age. In the United States, our culture does not encourage males to share their feelings or to ask for help.

Females are more likely to go to the doctor when they are ill, much more so than males.

I think that is where you can account for the difference in numbers. It's a matter of reporting, not of who is affected by it. These statistics are based off of who is reporting they are severely depressed, otherwise they have no means to count.

Males may have be severely depressed, but are not reporting it in the same numbers as females.

I'm not so sure that there is that much of a difference, but i do know that more Caucasian men in there mid life (midlife crisis) commit suicide and are depressed than women and teens (though teen depression and suicide is increasing)...plus depression tends to happen when an extreme, or life altering change occurs, such as losing an important job, or a loved one, and that plays a roll in statistics.

it's mostly because they want to be socially accepted or feel good about themselves when really what the girls themselves think is more important than what anyone else says be it your parents or your neighbors! you are you and nothing can change that.

life is i think 10% of what happens and 90% of what we make of it my best friend is a girl and the reason why that is because #1. she is really nice and #2. she doesn't care what other people think tihs is why she has so many friends and most women should realize that and not be so pressured to look good in other people's eyes

It's unclear as of yet whether this is an actual difference or an artifact of the difference in diagnosis (people are more likely to diagnose girls, or girls are more likely to seek help).

IF it is a real difference, it could be due to hormonal differences, or a cognitive difference in which case it's likely to be caused by social pressures (girls are encouraged to be introversive more, whilst guys are encouraged to be active maybe?)

It could all come down to the fact that girls are more self-conscious about themselves especially their own flaws and so when they are at a young age they have to learn how to except them and deal with them as they try to build confidence up around them....... Some girls do fine with excepting this and some girls really struggle with it and have a very hard time dealing with it....... From most women that I have talked to even as adults they are still self-conscious about themselves and never really overcome it....... This added to the fact that girls are driven by emotion gives you an idea that the emotion they feel most of the time is unhappiness or dissatisfied because of the things that bug them most about themselves.....

This would be my theory!!!

Because women are built for nurturing children.

Why would this depress them? This maternal instinct actually comes with a garbage. It makes them more happy if they interact socially. So they would care more on how other people thinks about them.

Men just do whatever makes them happy, if the interaction with their society doesn't bring them happiness, they could disconnect.

Women need to be received well by their society in order to be happy.

Cheers

Alice Cooper said it best in the song ONLY WOMEN BLEED but, honestly, it's a chemical thing caused by hormones and societal pressures.

Males are raised in a meritocracy and know that even if they're ugly, they can still be powerful and famous. Women are attracted to success and the physical features don't matter much.

Women are still very much measured on their looks. The can be smart, successful, hard-working, witty and still overlooked by 99% of the men in the world if they're not pretty.