Features of irrational obligations of men and women from different generations

The article indicates that women are more likely to become clients of psychotherapists, and depression occurs among them twice as often as among men. The researchers associate the reasons for differences with the peculiarities of the emotional sphere of women, and their emotionality – with biological factors. Based on the theoretical analysis, proceeding from the significance of irrational beliefs of the individual for experiencing emotions and in the development of depression as well as from the role of the family and current social conditions in the formation of the attitudes themselves, hypotheses are formulated regarding the number, spheres of action, and content of the attitudes of men and women. To identify irrational obligations, the method of unfinished sentences is used. The sample consists of two groups of respondents (from generations Y and Z). The sample size is 323 people. Semantic analysis is used to process the data. The hypotheses of the study are confirmed. Irrational obligations in the survey participants of generations Y and Z differ in the representation of types of the obligations. In terms of attitudes, respondents of generation Z are more progressive, while those of generation Y are more conservative. The differences in the progressiveness of the attitudes between them are more pronounced in men. Women of both generations have a greater number of obligations (concerning their behaviour), and they are associated with a greater number of spheres of life. In conclusion, it is suggested that the basis for women’s psychological well-being (in general) may be a softening of attitudes and a narrowing of the spheres of obligations, laid down in the process of upbringing and socialisation, as well as a convergence of the attitudes of men and women.

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