An Experimental Paradigm for Triggering Depressive Rumination
Max Altman, B. Arts Sc.
Most experimental research on depression currently employs sad mood inductions (e.g., watching a sad movie, listening to sad music) to test hypotheses (Kuehner et al., 2007). However, sadness represents just one symptom of a major depressive episode (MDE), and it is unknown whether sad mood inductions alone can trigger the larger suite of symptoms that characterize the syndrome. Consequently, most studies of human depression use correlational or case-control methods (Fazel et al., 2008; Newton-Howes et al., 2006; Rich & Scovel, 1987).
My research focuses on developing and implementing an experimental paradigm capable of triggering most of the psychological symptoms of depression, including sad mood, anhedonia, feelings of worthlessness, and difficulty concentrating. Establishing experimental control over multiple symptoms of depression can help to better approximate an MDE in a laboratory setting and consequently improve our understanding of the etiology of the MDE syndrome (Saveanu & Nemeroff, 2012).
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Kuehner, C., Holzhauer, S., & Huffziger, S. (2007). Decreased cortisol response to awakening is associated with cognitive vulnerability to depression in a nonclinical sample of young adults. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 32(2), 199-209.
Fazel, S., Khosla, V., Doll, H., & Geddes, J. (2008). The prevalence of mental disorders among the homeless in western countries: systematic review and meta-regression analysis. PLoS medicine, 5(12), e225.
Newton-Howes, G., Tyrer, P., & Johnson, T. (2006). Personality disorder and the outcome of depression: meta-analysis of published studies. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 188(1), 13-20.
Rich, A. R., & Scovel, M. (1987). Causes of depression in college students: A cross-lagged panel correlational analysis. Psychological Reports, 60(1), 27-30.
Saveanu, R. V., & Nemeroff, C. B. (2012). Etiology of depression: genetic and environmental factors. Psychiatric clinics, 35(1), 51-71.
Unusual Sensory Experiences Reported by Bereaved Individuals
Max Altman, B. Arts Sc.
Bereavement following the loss of a loved one is one of life’s most challenging experiences. The bereavement process involves significant emotional, cognitive, and behavioural changes, many of which overlap with the diagnostic criteria for major depressive disorder (MDD). Approximately, 40-60% of bereaved individuals report an unusual sensory experience following a significant loss (Keen et al., 2013). These unusual sensory experiences (USE) encompass a broad range of phenomena, such as hallucinations and misperceptions, where a discrepancy exists between perceived and actual reality.
Notably, the content of these experiences often relates directly related to or is interpreted as an extension of the relationship with the deceased (Hayes & Leudar, 2016). My research aims to understand how and why these experiences are valuable in emotionally processing the loss of a loved one. I hypothesize that unusual sensory experiences involuntarily expose bereaved individuals to their distressing thoughts and feelings, ultimately facilitating adaptive rumination and emotional processing.
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Keen, C., Murray, C., & Payne, S. (2013). Sensing the presence of the deceased: A narrative review. Mental Health, Religion & Culture, 16(4), 384-402.
Hayes, J., & Leudar, I. (2016). Experiences of continued presence: On the practical consequences of ‘hallucinations’ in bereavement. Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice, 89(2), 194-210.
Sex and Gender Differences in Depression
Courtney D. Aucoin, MSc.
Self identified women are 2 to 3 times more likely than self-identified men to be depressed worldwide (Salk et al., 2017). According to the conventional view, depression is a disorder—the result of something malfunctioning in the brain (American Psychiatric Association, 2022). However, this view has been criticized as a socially constructed narrative that lacks an objective component (Horwitz & Wakefield, 2007; Frances & Nardo, 2013). As applied to the sex/gender difference, the disorder narrative argues that women are 2-3 times more likely than men to have something malfunction in their brains. Sadly, this is consistent with a long, sad history in psychiatry in which women’s emotional responses were pathologized simply because they differ from those of men (as if men were the appropriate yardstick for determining normality) (Kaplan, 1983; Tasca et al., 2012).
I am interested in testing the disorder narrative against alternative hypotheses for the sex difference rooted in the view that depression is a normal emotional response that is triggered by complex stressors.
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American Psychiatric Association. (2022). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed., text rev.).
Frances, A. J., & Nardo, J. M. (2013). ICD-11 should not repeat the mistakes made by DSM-5. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 203(1), 1–2. https://doi.org/10.1192/bjp.bp.113.127647
Horwitz, A. V., & Wakefield, J. C. (2007). The loss of sadness how psychiatry transformed normal sorrow into depressive disorder. Oxford University Press.
Kaplan, M. (1983). A woman’s view of DSM-III. American Psychologist, 38(7), 786–792. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.38.7.786
Salk, R. H., Hyde, J. S., & Abramson, L. Y. (2017). Gender differences in depression in representative national samples: Meta-analyses of diagnoses and symptoms. Psychological Bulletin, 143(8), 783–822. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000102
Tasca, C., Rapetti, M., Carta, M. G., & Fadda, B. (2012). Women and hysteria in the history of mental health. Clinical Practice and Epidemiology in Mental Health : CP & EMH, 8, 110–119.
Suicide as an Adaptation
Anmol Thind, HBSc.
At its extreme, human suicidal desire can result in death; however, engaging in suicidal behaviours can be considered adaptive (De Catanzaro, 1995). Humans evolved to be social, so our behaviours are driven by our desire to be accepted by others (Baumeister & Tice, 1990; Leary, 1990). If an individual perceives they could be rejected, especially by their family, they risk decreasing their direct fitness by losing familial support (Parsons et al., 2016). As an evolved response to the threat towards their direct fitness, the individual will feel an increase in suicidal desire (De Catanzaro, 1995).
We aim to further study this hypothesis to determine evolutionarily relevant risk factors for suicide. By understanding the evolved function of suicide, we can inform clinicians in the creation of effective prevention programs, as one cannot attempt to solve a problem without fully understanding it.
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Baumeister, R. F., & Tice, D. M. (1990). Point-counterpoints: Anxiety and social exclusion. Journal of social and clinical Psychology, 9(2), 165–195.
De Catanzaro, D. (1995). Reproductive status, family interactions, and suicidal ideation: Surveys of the general public and high-risk groups. Ethology and Sociobiology, 16(5), 385–394.
Leary, M. R. (1990). Responses to social exclusion: Social anxiety, jealousy, loneliness, depression, and low self-esteem. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 9(2), 221–229.
Parsons, C. A., Jacobson, J. A., & Krupp, D. B. (2016). Self-resemblance and social rejection. Evolutionary Psychology, 14(4), 1474704916685324.
Syme, K. L., Garfield, Z. H., & Hagen, E. H. (2016). Testing the bargaining vs. inclusive fitness models of suicidal behavior against the ethnographic record. Evolution and Human Behavior, 37(3), 179–192.
Van Orden, K. A., Witte, T. K., Cukrowicz, K. C., Braithwaite, S. R., Selby, E. A., & Joiner, T. E., Jr. (2010). The interpersonal theory of suicide. Psychological Review, 117(2), 575–600. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0018697