# Exploration of Gender Differences in COVID-19 Discourse on Reddit

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2008.05713 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2008.05713/

## Key facts

- Cited by 6 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- First posted on arXiv 13 Aug 2020.

## Built on by (most cited first, 6 of 6)

- [BERT-Beta: A Proactive Probabilistic Approach to Text Moderation](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2109.08805/) (2021)
- [The incel lexicon: Deciphering the emergent cryptolect of a global misogynistic community](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2105.12006/) (2021)
- [Quantifying Public Response to COVID-19 Events: Introducing the Community Sentiment and Engagement Index](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2412.16925/) (2024)
- [On the Interplay between Musical Preferences and Personality through the Lens of Language](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2508.18208/) (2025)
- [The Shifting Landscape of Vaccine Discourse: Insights From a Decade of Pre- to Post-COVID-19 Vaccine Posts on Social Media](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2511.16832/) (2025)
- [Unveiling Affective Polarization Trends in Parliamentary Proceedings](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2512.05231/) (2025)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Decades of research on differences in the language of men and women have established postulates about preferences in lexical, topical, and emotional expression between the two genders, along with their sociological underpinnings. Using a novel dataset of male and female linguistic productions collected from the Reddit discussion platform, we further confirm existing assumptions about gender-linked affective distinctions, and demonstrate that these distinctions are amplified in social media postings involving emotionally-charged discourse related to COVID-19. Our analysis also confirms considerable differences in topical preferences between male and female authors in spontaneous pandemic-related discussions.