this post was submitted on 29 Jun 2025
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A profound relational revolution is underway, not orchestrated by tech developers but driven by users themselves. Many of the 400 million weekly users of ChatGPT are seeking more than just assistance with emails or information on food safety; they are looking for emotional support.

“Therapy and companionship” have emerged as two of the most frequent applications for generative AI globally, according to the Harvard Business Review. This trend marks a significant, unplanned pivot in how people interact with technology.

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[–] TimewornTraveler@lemmy.dbzer0.com -3 points 4 days ago (2 children)

what makes you think their gender is even relevant to their practice?

[–] sp3ctr4l@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 4 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

Gender and sex broadly influence socialization and communication norms in many ways.

Yep, there are many cases where people do not conform to standard gender/sex norms... but the norms do still broadly, empirically exist or have a physiological basis.

Personally, I am all for breaking down gender norms and stereotypes and roles, and everyone being accepting of more variance and deviation from the norm, as many people do not neatly adhere to the patriarchal hetero dichotomy norm.

... But many still do.

Especially where I am right now, in a poor red state (had to move quite far to find somewhere I could afford to rent), where the education quality is laughable, and traditional gender/sex norms are very prevalent, there are no legal protections against discrimination against queer, disabled persons such as myself.

EDIT:

Also, another, perhaps more direct way to answer your question:

Then I see in their notes later that I am 'arguementative' or 'agitated' or 'aggressive'... far, fsr more often if its a woman psych/soc worker/counselor who I am... not even 'correcting', just trying to not have them put words in my mouth.

Men tend to be less intimidated and more open to my insistance that I meant exactly what I said... and I am talking in the same voice, same mannerisms, same everything, with everyone.

I don't know how you're reading this, but again, I meant what I said.

What makes me think that gender and sex affect a person's efficacy in the psych field, as it pertains to treating different sex/genders, is that I have personally experienced this.

I have been seeing many different kinds of pscyh professionals for a very long time... kickstarted by my mother having a mental break down when I was a kid, and then my family developing a very dysfunctional dynamic, then us all going to family therapy, and then basically each of us continuing on with individual therapy, and moving, and then moving again, and then again...

So I have seen many, many different psych people in my life thus far, and from my own, personal experience... it is far more common for women to interperet things I am saying as hostile and aggressive.

Switch over to a male therapist, if this is possible given insurance and local staffing constraints... and oh hey wow, nearly none of them interpret me as hostile, and I'm acting the same way.

...

I really don't see how this is that baffling of a concept... it is very common with PCPs, for example, sometimes various nurses as well... for your gender/sex preference as to who will be caring for you to be something that is asked.

It is fairly common for say, queer folks to be able to request or prefer a queer therapist... many addiction counselors are former addicts themselves, and this often is very important to establishing trust and relatibility with an addict seeking to detox or go clean.

There's a whole wealth of academic literature about how male PCPs will often downplay women's legitimate health concerns, and I find such literature to be largely valid.

In comparison, there is nearly no literature on how women mental health experts downplay (or even aggravate) men's mental health concerns, despite this being part of the broad stereotype of 'why don't men go to therapy?'

Yep, a lot of it is from the machismo and social stigma.

Another lot of it is from... a lot of guys who actually get over those things and try it, well they basically feel unheard, that their treatment was ineffective or unhelpful at addressing their concerns, or even worse, they feel basically gaslit and manipulated.

...

In conclusion, perhaps the most useful medicsl advice I have ever recieved, and I will joyfully tell you it was from a woman:

Be your own advocate, especially if you don't have a reliable support network in your general life.

[–] spankmonkey@lemmy.world 2 points 4 days ago (1 children)

They are human beings who are more frequently able to relate to people who are similar to them based on shared experiences including social pressures. I don't think either gender is unable to relate to the other gender, but social pressure is pretty strong and leads to common outcomes that involve pressures based race, gender, and economic status among others. Someone from a wealthy family is more likely to have a certain outlook compared to someone who had food insecurity as a child.

[–] TimewornTraveler@lemmy.dbzer0.com 0 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

assumptions assumptions!

your presumption is that you'd be a better therapist, not a worse one, if you have more shared experiences with the client. that's not something current evidence supports.

empathy means we strive to understand one another, not presume we understand them based on our own experiences. THAT is how bad therapy happens. and self-disclosure is a crutch for poor rapport building skills.

without the shared experiences, there can be more drive for empath and mutual understanding. the feeling of being understood by someone outside your group can be transformative.

In truth, positive outcomes have little correlation with therapist-client demographics. the demographic differential does alter what the course of therapy might look like, but not the outcomes.

[–] spankmonkey@lemmy.world 0 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago) (1 children)

your presumption is that you’d be a better therapist, not a worse one, if you have more shared experiences with the client. that’s not something current evidence supports.

That isn't something I said or what I meant. Have fun arguing with your strawman.

[–] TimewornTraveler@lemmy.dbzer0.com 0 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

okay then... I guess you're making this an adversarial thing. I'm not sure what you intended to mean by bringing up shared experiences if you weren't speaking to efficacy. but i guess i get why you made it adversarial: it's frustrating being misunderstood. happens to me too. i just got a comment like that in my inbox just like it. I tried to share insights on how empathy and diversity contributes to positive outcomes in therapy, and i got this bizarre tone deaf debate bro response instead. cant always be understood, i guess. it's fine. if you can't find common ground, you can at least tell people off who are trying to have a pleasant conversation with you, that'll at least ensure fewer and fewer people interact with you

[–] spankmonkey@lemmy.world 1 points 1 day ago* (last edited 1 day ago) (1 children)

Your responses have been extremely unpleasant and argumentative.

Are you confusing my responses with sp3ctr4l?

[–] TimewornTraveler@lemmy.dbzer0.com 0 points 20 hours ago* (last edited 20 hours ago) (1 children)

nope, not confusing you with anyone.

and the point I'm trying to make is that you're perceiving it as argumentative when it's not. you finding me unpleasant is entirely your business, not mine.

just please be aware of what I'm trying to tell you about the value of demographic differences.

[–] spankmonkey@lemmy.world 1 points 20 hours ago

I'm aware of what you are saying and disagree. You apparently take disagreement personally as most of your comments in that post to various other users are hostile too.

Please be aware of how you are approaching discourse.