Pathologising fatherhood: the case of male Post Natal Depression in Britain

This chapter discusses the emergence of male Post Natal Depression (PND) as a health concern in Britain. Up to the early 1990s, PND was represented as an exclusively female condition. Some however – including medical professionals, academics and media commentators - now take a different view. PND, they suggest, can affect men and some argue almost as many men as women are affected. We offer here a sociological perspective on this development. First, we draw on work about the process of medicalization. Second, we consider social constructionist accounts of ‘the problem of fatherhood’. Third, we situate male PND in relation to analysis of ‘masculinity’ and its pathologisation. In conclusion, we suggest that a central aspect of the emergence of male PND is the validation of need for professional intervention in childrearing.