Gender inequality is a common phenomenon in our society. Due to this inequality, women always lag behind men in political, economic, social, and cultural spheres.
Gender inequality functions like a vicious cycle.
On one hand, it pushes women back, and on the other, this backwardness leads to their oppression, hindering their natural development. Surprisingly, gender inequality even affects the thickness of women’s brain cortex.
This claim was made by researchers at Oxford University.
A recent study revealed that gender inequality leads to differences in the brain structure of women.
The study suggests that due to inequality, women are often under mental pressure and stress, which results in a thinner brain cortex. Researchers have described this as a "major warning for society."
The study found that in countries with higher gender inequality, the difference in the thickness of the brain cortex between men and women is more significant.
Conversely, in countries with less gender inequality, there is no notable difference in the thickness of the brain cortex.
The largest part of the human brain is the cerebrum, and it is covered by the cerebral cortex. Researchers examined 68 regions of the cerebral cortex.
They discovered that the areas of the cortex related to emotional feelings, stress, and anxiety in women’s brains become thinner.
As a result, women’s mental health deteriorates, leading to issues like depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). This also contributes to women lagging behind in areas like education and leadership.
The researchers conducted the study by analyzing the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans of 4,078 women and 3,798 men, aged between 18 and 40, from 29 different countries.
According to the United Nations’ Gender Inequality Index and the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Index, Scandinavian countries are leading in terms of gender equality.
The study found that there is little to no difference in the thickness of the brain cortex between men and women in these countries.
However, in Japan, where gender equality is relatively lower, differences were found in the thickness of the brain cortex in women. Among the 29 countries included in the study, Japan ranks 12th in gender equality.
Lead researcher Dr. Nicholas Crossley, a visiting professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Oxford University and an associate professor at Pontificia Universidad Católica in Chile, said that the study proves that the adverse social environments created by gender inequality play a role in the differences in women’s brain structures, as most women have to live in such environments.
Another research collaborator, Tsukasa Ueno, an assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Kyoto University Hospital, said,
"It is essential to conduct further research to accurately determine how gender inequality impacts the structure of women’s brains and which areas it affects."
The paper was jointly published by twelve researchers in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).