Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Lissann Lichtenstein
ANTH 1020-013
The word depression is commonly heard today throughout the medical community, often
tied in with topics such as clinical depression, PTSD and postpartum depression. According to
The New Oxford American Dictionary Second Edition, depression is defined as: severe
despondency and dejection, typically felt over a period of time and accompanied by feelings of
hopelessness and inadequacy. It can range from mild cases, often including seasonal depression
or temporary due to hormonal changes, to severe cases, referred to as major depressive disorder.
And according to the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance, "Major depressive disorder
affects approximately 14.8 million American adults, or about 6.7 percent of the U.S. population
age 18 and older, in a given year. (Depression Statistics) Due to the potential severity of the
side effects, researchers are seeking answers as to why depression exists and what can be done to
In the search for better treatment, researchers must identify those affected and likely to be
affected by depression. There is diversity in depression as it affects people of any age, gender,
race, etc. (Although one might say that due to this, it might not be considered diverse.) However,
there are certain groups more affected then others. According to Caroline Sonnenberg (2013),
women are around twice as likely to be depressed as their same age male counterparts. It is
believed that this may be caused by a higher exposure to risk factors that will be discussed later
in this paper. Stewart (2008) states that the Aboriginal peoples of Canada who live off reserve are
1.5 times more likely to be depressed then other Canadians. (It was mentioned by both of these
sources that the factors they measured were more environmental rather then genetic.) As well,
Flint (2014) discussed the possible genetic components of depression. They stated that those with
a family history of depression have a 2.84 ratio of increased risk of major depression. When they
combined several studies, they were able to estimate depression heritability to be 37% (95%
confidence intervals).
A study performed by Florida State University has helped to begin research in an area of
depression not previously explored. They focused on whether "the contribution of neighborhood
urban form and social environment [had effects on] depressive symptomology. (Coutts, 2012)
According to their results, living in a higher housing density neighborhood is associated with
fewer depression symptoms. This is was tied to possible easier access to services, more ability to
socialize with community members, and the ability to walk from place to place rather then use
motor vehicles, promoting exercise and physical wellbeing. They also stated that those living in
neighborhoods with a higher auto commuter density are associated with more depressive
symptoms and that those living in residentially stable neighborhoods displayed fewer
2012)
Since depression is defined as extremely negative feelings about oneself, one might want
to consider if happiness rates around the world reflect on the international depression rates. The
World Happiness Report determined happiness around the world with answers to questions from
8 different categories. These were the GDP (Gross Domestic Product) per capita, social support,
healthy life expectancy at birth, freedom to make life choices, generosity, perceptions of
corruption, positive affect and negative affect (see Appendix A for more information on the
specific definitions of these terms). The United States ranks 14th out of 155 countries, with the
top 5 countries mainly being located in Scandinavia and the top 20 countries mainly being
classified as first world countries. (The last 33 countries are mainly located in Africa.) Many of
the factors measured by this study are material, environmental or patient subjective and not
genetically based and so do not help to prove or disprove the role of evolution in happiness.
Another consideration from the World Happiness Report is how they define misery. The
classifications used were being poor (below 60% of the median household income)uneducated
(USA and Indonesia: no higher education), unemployed,not partnered,physical illness (below the
these categories were not used to show misery rates in each country, they were used to illustrate
how they might fall on their own if the problem was eliminated. The majority of the countries
examined in this section, including the United States, experienced their highest improvement in
the area of mental health. This statistically shows that increased efforts in dealing with issues
such as depression can decrease overall misery, thereby increasing happiness, in nations as a
There are theses out there that have tried to address the role of genetics in depression.
Some researchers say that it may be a response to our rapid brain development. Nesse (2000)
brought several theories together in his paper to try and address a genetic variable. The points he
emphasized were first, determining whether depression is a defense or a defect. Second that low
mood and depression are better formulated in terms of the situations that shaped them instead of
just their functions. (Nesse, 2000) And third, that generic low mood and the negative affect may
have been formed to deal with adverse situations by helping the organism not waste energy on
events that would not benefit them. However, this idea of thinking lacks evidence to say if
with depression. In class lecture, it was addressed that there are many genes in the body that
serve more then one function. Some of the genes natural selection will select for can be labeled
as antagonistic pleitropy. In other words, genes may serve a good purpose early in the life of a
person, but can have negative consequences later. However, if those negative consequences
occur after the time of reproduction, natural selection will still select them for the positive
consequences earlier in life. Also, as we are unsure of the purpose of the vast amounts of junk
DNA in the body, it cannot be fully ruled out as a factor. And due to the lack of conclusion on
genetic location in depression, we cannot effectively examine ancient DNA to look for
Some scientifically proven risk factors are discussed by Sonnenburg (2013). In dealing
with late life depression, it lists the presence of chronic physical disease, diminished physical and
mental activity and functioning and functional limitations as some of the physical risks. It also
includes the loss of partner, a lower socio-economic status, low social and interpersonal support,
personality characteristics that do not promote healthy social interaction and both chronic and
short term effects of medications (which can be known to change as a patient ages). Again, it is
seen that these are not factors that suggest evolution playing a role in depression distribution and
While research about the genetic causes of depression has currently proved inconclusive,
forms of treatment have continued to evolve with new knowledge about those affected and new
technologies now available. Donna Stewart (2008) reported that in Canada, one of their most
effective trials for depression treatment was the program Partners in Care. This trial compared
the care from an average primary care clinic to care from a quality-improvement clinic. The
quality-improvement clinic focused on intuitional commitments, more education for clinicians
and patients, and more effective follow up options, including access to medications. Over the
course of a year, it was shown that those who received care from the quality-improvement clinic
were able to more proactively take charge of their treatment and make use of the options
available. Also, these groups showed better outcome and progression overall. This study brings
attention to the idea that traditional screenings are not enough to aid successful treatment.
Securing more options for patients and clinicians for more personalized treatment leads to
to help predict depression in a person. They first state that there is no reliable laboratory test for
diagnosing mental illness. This normally comes from a patient and their close circle relating their
platform for expressing personal opinion, it makes sense that clues might be found within the
posts. After reviewing the posts of 476 Twitter users a year prior to their onset, the
qualification system they developed had a 70% accuracy rate in classifying the likelihood of
depression in a subjects.
Depression is a very widespread illness that affects many people around the world, both
directly and indirectly. There are an estimated 300 million people worldwide suffering from
depression (De Choudhury, 2013). And in the search for understanding of this illness, genetic
and evolutionary theses have been explored and conclusions have yet to be reached due to lack
of evidence. Even in the face of this setback, strides are being made to further our knowledge
of this illness so as to help with the diagnosis and treatment. Hopefully, with more time and
Coutts, Christopher, Rebecca Miles, and Asal Mohamadi. "Neighborhood urban form, social
De Choudhury, Munmun, et al. "Predicting Depression via Social Media." ICWSM. 2013.
Depression. The New Oxford American Dictionary Second Edition. New York: Oxford
"Depression Statistics." Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance. N.p., n.d. Web.
Flint, Jonathan, and Kenneth S. Kendler. "The genetics of major depression." Neuron 81.3
(2014): 484-503.
Helliwell, J., Layard, R., & Sachs, J. (2017). World Happiness Report 2017, New York:
Nesse, Randolph M. "Is Depression an Adaptation?." Arch Gen Psychiatry 57 (2000): 14-20.
Stewart, Donna E. "Battling depression." Canadian Medical Association Journal 178.8 (2008):
1023-1024.
Sonnenberg, C. M., et al. "Gender differences in the relation between depression and social
I realized that there would not necessarily be room in my paper to include explanations
on the variables used in the World Happiness Report. However, I recognized I needed to include
GDP per capita is in terms of Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) adjusted to constant 2011
international dollars, taken from the World Development Indicators (WDI) released by the World
Social support is based on responses to the question If you were in trouble, do you have
relatives or friends you can count on to help you whenever you need them, or not?
The time series of healthy life expectancy at birth are constructed based on data from the
World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Development Indicators (WDI).
Freedom to make life choices is based on responses to the question Are you satisfied or
dissatisfied with your freedom to choose what you do with your life?
Generosity is based on responses to the question Have you donated money to a charity in
widespread throughout the government or not? and Is corruption widespread within businesses
or not?
Positive affect is defined as the average of previous-day affect measures for happiness,
laughter and enjoyment for GWP waves 3-7 (years 2008 to 2012, and some in 2013). It is
defined as the average of laughter and enjoyment for other waves where the happiness question
(Definitions taken from Technical Box 2: Detailed information about each of the