Major depressive disorder or MDD is a mental illness that negatively affects how you think, act and feel. To be diagnosed with depression, symptoms must be present for at least two weeks. Some symptoms can include sad, empty, or anxious mood, irritability, loss of interest or pleasure, and feelings of hopelessness. It is typically treated with medication or psychotherapy. Researchers and doctors are constantly trying to better understand the causes and symptoms of depression to develop better treatments.
In the article, “The Emotional Ups and Downs in the Lives of the Depressed” Dr. Susan Krauss Whitbourne describes new research that investigates the everyday emotions of depressed people in real-life situations. Most people believe that depression is a constant feeling of sadness and an inability to experience positive emotions. Dr. Whitbourne summarizes a study done by Nelson and colleagues that investigated fluctuation of positive and negative affective states, using a method known as ecological momentary assessment (EMA) that notifies people throughout the day with a signal to answer mood-related questions on a smartphone. The questions were given for 4 days, every 30 to 90 minutes, and asked participants to indicate their current emotional state. They were also asked to describe the situation that they were in and what had occurred before receiving the questionnaire. Participants had to describe how they were feeling, happy or sad, instead of rating their mood or emotions. The results showed that people with depression had higher negative affect and lower positive affect. Additionally, people with depression showed similar levels of variability in their positive moods as did the control group without depression, but their overall positive mood ratings were lower. This correlates with the emotional inertia hypothesis. There were no signs of emotional numbness or ECI regarding positive/happy events. Therefore, depressed people were able to enjoy pleasant activities even if it was to a lesser degree.
In the article, “Abnormal emotional reactivity in depression: Contrasting theoretical models using neurophysiological data” the researchers investigated similar cognitive disorders such as anxiety and depression to determine how patients with these disorders react to emotional stimuli. They tested three similar models to see which one correlated better with disorders like MDD. The first two were the positive attenuation hypothesis, which states that MDD causes reduced emotional reactivity to positive stimuli or events, and the negative potentiation hypothesis, which states that MDD causes increased reactivity to negative stimuli or events. Researchers believed that the last model, ECI, which states that MDD causes a dampening of reactivity to emotional stimuli or events broadly, would correlate the best with their analysis. All three models were examined using SEM which analyzes which hypothesis best fits the data. Additionally, an LPP or a late positive potential was used as a neural marker. To analyze LPP, EEG data were collected while participants were shown emotional or neutral images. The results showed support for the ECI. The participants with depression but not anxiety experienced overall reduced emotional reactivity.
Both articles seek to better understand the causes and symptoms of depression. However, Dr. Nelson’s experiment took place in a natural setting rather than a laboratory and showed support for the emotional inertia hypothesis. Depressed participants were still able to feel pleasure in a positive situation and feel negative emotions in unpleasant situations or events. Therefore, they did not experience dampened reactivity to any kind of emotional stimuli. On the other hand, Dr. Hill et al. did a deeper analysis into the brain activity of a person with depression. Both articles showed that depression is a complicated disorder that manifests itself differently in each individual. They gave a deeper understanding of depression and provided useful information that can one day help create better treatments.
References:
Hill, K. E., South, S. C., Egan, R. P., & Foti, D. (2019). Abnormal emotional reactivity in depression: Contrasting theoretical models using neurophysiological data. Biological psychology, 141, 35–43. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsycho.2018.12.011
Whitbourne, Susan Krauss. “The Emotional Ups and Downs in the Lives of the Depressed.” Psychology Today, Sussex Publishers, 15 Feb. 2020, www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/fulfillment-any-age/202002/the-emotional-ups-and-downs-in-the-lives-the-depressed.
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