The authors examine the advertisements for psychotropic drugs in the major medical journals of Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden in 1975, 1985, and 1995, with the object of illuminating the gender construction of the portrayed user. Using both a longitudinal and a cross-sectional approach, the study looked for a common Nordic gender display and whether it varied over time. The Nordic journals clearly conveyed a message that psychotropics are a gendered product, but without any uniform pattern. In 1975, men dominated the gender portrayals in Finland and Denmark, and women in Norway and Sweden. In 1985, the pattern was reversed: women dominated in Finland and Denmark, and men in Sweden and Norway. By 1995, the advertisements were mainly for antidepressants, and women were portrayed as the predominant users in Denmark, Finland, and Norway; the Swedish journal displayed couples only. In advertisements with dual-gender positions, however, the focus was on the female; they showed that the drug would assist her in fulfilling the expected supportive female gender behavior.
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