Evaluation of Male-Specific Psychoeducation for Major Depressive Disorder Compared to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Psychoeducation: A Randomized Controlled Investigation in Mentally Distressed Men

Background: Research suggests that male-specific psychotherapy approaches for majordepressive disorder (MDD) that consider traditional masculinity ideologies (TMI) and their impact on men’s MDD may achieve improved treatment efficacy and reduced therapy dropout. However, to date, randomized controlled studies examining male-specific psychotherapy for MDD or specific therapy aspects remain lacking. Aim: To evaluate a male-specific psychoeducation for MDD in a randomized controlled investigation. Methods: An anonymous online study on men’s mental health examined 152 self-reporting mentally distressed cisgender men (Mage = 25.5 ± 9.1) from German-speaking countries of Europe. After completing baseline assessments of state self-esteem, state shame, positive/negative affect, depressive symptoms, and endorsement of TMI, men were randomly assigned to read either a male-specific (n = 78) or a cognitive behavioral therapy oriented (CBT; n = 74) psychoeducation text for MDD. Subsequently, participants rated its usefulness and completed follow-up assessments. Results: Men in the male-specific psychoeducation condition showed a decrease in shame and negative affect as compared to men in the CBT-based psychoeducation condition. Furthermore, in the male-specific psychoeducation condition an increase in prototypical depression symptoms was identified as compared to the CBT-based psychoeducation condition, whereas male-typical externalizing depression symptoms tended to decrease, although not statistically significant. The psyc hoeducation condition overall had no influenceon TMI. Conclusion: Male-specific psychoeducation for MDD targeting TMI may help depressed men feel less ashamed about their MDD and experience less negative affect about their condition than CBT-based psychoeducation. Furthermore, male-specific psychoeducation for MDD may elicit a shift from detrimental male-typical externalizing depression symptoms to more prototypical depression symptoms, which warrants further investigations in future studies.