I think part of this depends on how "hero" is defined. The psychology of heroism is actually not well studied. Altruism is, but altruism doesn't involve risking something.

My old boss, Philip Zimbardo (the social psychologist), has actually started a nonprofit called the Heroic Imagination Project to figure out what makes a person willing to risk something. We discussed the nature of heroism and it is more geared towards men (or men are more geared towards it).

However, we also discussed the notion of proactive heroism vs reactive heroism. Women, for example, may not "react" in the moment like a man would, however, she might give up years of her life to care for a family member, volunteer for decades, sacrifice her own dreams to support a partner's (more true in the past) - in other words - do smaller and/or more consistent acts over a longer period of time. Would the accumulation of smaller acts be considered heroic?

I think that whenever an individual transforms themselves for the better, they are undergoing a version of the hero's journey.

As long as only one man is needed to impregnate hundreds or thousands of women, men will most likely be treated in a more disposable way than women. I'm not saying I think this is right. Nature does not have a “suggestions box.” I’m not sure how much awareness around these issues will help but I’m hoping it will encourage people to at least try to imagine what it’s like to be in another person’s shoes.