Online Depression (1)
(1) Introduction
I previously presented several lectures on the relationship between social media and ethics, as well as anxiety. Building on that foundation, I'm now aiming to discuss a concept called "online depression" in several sessions. Unfortunately, attention to topics like online anxiety and depression is not as significant in our world and individual lives as it should be. Existing literature in psychology, technology philosophy, and related fields often lacks depth and richness on these matters. This lecture series serves as an invitation to contemplate this important subject for both individual and collective human life. The first session primarily focuses on conceptual analysis of depression, online phenomena, and online depression. Subsequent sessions delve into various aspects and manifestations of this depression, with the final session touching on points that may aid in better coping with this issue. While I strive to avoid repeating what I've covered in previous discussions, some repetitions are inevitable due to the close relationship between online depression and online anxiety.
(2) Depression as a Feeling
There are many concepts surrounding the notion of depression, all of which share important semantic connections with the concept of depression itself. These include sorrow, pain, low mood, loneliness, withdrawal, self-absorption, despair, confusion, hopelessness, lethargy, and suffering. Each of these concepts sheds light on aspects of the concept of depression. For example, when we speak of lethargy, we are referring to a behavioral issue intertwined with depression. Or when we talk about confusion, we're discussing the cognitive pattern of a depressive situation, which is crucial. According to a psychologist's interpretation, life is more perplexing than challenging, especially evident in depressive situations. However, all these words indicate feelings and emotions that are experienced and felt by individuals in accordance with specific circumstances and situations. Therefore, it might be helpful to first look at the meaning of feeling or emotion, and then focus on the concept of the feeling or emotion of depression. In other words, when we talk about depression, we are talking about the feeling or emotion of depression, which has both desired and undesired implications on other aspects of our personality, such as thoughts, actions, speech, and needs.
(3)What is an Emotion?
Understanding human emotions and feelings is considered a way to understand individuals. Emotions, one of the five fundamental aspects of humans along with thought, need, speech, and action, manifest uniquely and distinctly among the other aspects. Firstly, emotions tend to be the ultimate goals of the other four aspects—thought, need, speech, and action—aiming towards achieving positive and satisfying feelings. Secondly, emotions shape and determine the form and path of our other aspects. While the extent and nature of this influence are subject to much debate, there's no doubt about its fundamental impact. For example, our needs and thoughts are greatly influenced by our emotions. Thirdly, emotions, at least initially, appear to have more complexities than the other four aspects for analysis and examination. We don't even have a straightforward and clear definition of emotions and feelings, making their analysis, understanding, and examination challenging. Additionally, according to some approaches, there's no clear distinction between thought and feeling, complicating matters further. Furthermore, each aspect encompasses a wide range of experiences and effects, making their analysis, understanding, and examination even more difficult. Hence, we require various tools like art and literature for a better and deeper understanding of emotions and feelings. Specifically in the history of philosophy, from Aristotle and Descartes to Spinoza, Hume, William James, Brentano, and Freud, scholars have grappled with this complex and multifaceted issue.
Given this brief overview, it sets the stage to discuss one of the most famous topics in the history of philosophy and psychology: emotions and feelings. While I've referenced this topic in discussions about anxiety before, its importance warrants revisiting it.
(4) What is an emotion? William James's Impact
One of the significant endeavors in the history of philosophy and psychology regarding understanding emotions and feelings was undertaken by William James, an American pragmatist philosopher. In 1884, James published an essay in the journal Mind titled "What is an Emotion?" This work is usually remembered as a prominent example of the fusion of philosophy, psychology, and physiology. Another Danish psychologist named Lange was working on the same topic around the same time from a similar perspective, leading James and Lange to co-author a book titled "Emotions," published in 1885, and their theory is generally known as the James-Lange theory. The highlight of James's essay is his proposition that, contrary to the prevailing belief of his time, which considered emotions as feelings that also have physiological and bodily effects, he presented the issue in a completely different light. In other words, James reversed this relationship. According to his perspective, if we experience fear, we'll experience physical effects such as trembling hands and heart palpitations. We feel fear, and the physical manifestations of trembling hands are a consequence of that fear. James believes that the primary essence lies in these sensory perceptions—trembling hands, stress, and restlessness—causing fear. Emotions and feelings are nothing but interpretations we, as humans, make of these sensory perceptions. For example, we fear a snake. What is this fear? It's the physiological changes we feel, interpreted in our minds. James argues that when we consider this collection of sensory perceptions as the source of emotions, we haven't overlooked anything. Thus, he suggests considering these bodily and physiological sensations as the foundation of emotions and feelings. This argument, based on the inversion of cause and effect, is revolutionary. According to James, an external stimulus induces a sensory and biological change in humans, and the human mind's interpretation of this change is termed as an emotion. In one of the episodes of my book program, I introduced this article and highlighted some critical points about it. Nevertheless, the importance of this approach in the history of psychology and philosophy of emotion cannot be ignored. This point is particularly significant when discussing many therapeutic models for depression, as many of them consistently emphasize the physiological signs of depressive feelings. However, in this brief lecture, when I talk about depression, I am referring to the feeling of depression highlighted by prominent psychologists. Therefore, it is necessary for me to take a special look at the approaches that exist in psychology regarding this concept.
(5) Different Interpretations of Depression
When we talk about the concept of depression, we're not speaking of a singular meaning; rather, there can be a spectrum of meanings associated with this concept. A general meaning of depression is any sadness or sorrow. In this sense, a depressed individual is characterized as gloomy and melancholic. However, when it comes to psychology and psychotherapy, this concept refers to specific symptoms and disorders, some of which have been described in authoritative works like the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). In all of these interpretations, a depressed individual is mixed with feelings of sadness, loneliness, emptiness, and isolation, which deeply affect their work and actions. Depending on the duration, timing, and form of this depression, different types of depression are distinguished. According to World Health Organization statistics from 2018, over 300 million people suffered from this disorder that year, roughly around 4% of the world's population. More than 10% of people worldwide have experienced it at least once in their lives, and depression is considered the fourth leading cause of disability. According to Canadian Ministry of Health statistics from 2012, over 5.4% of Canadians over 15 years old experienced this disorder from 2011 to 2012, with the highest number occurring in the 15 to 24 age group, at 7%.
The most common and well-known form of depression is Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), which, according to DSM-5, has symptoms, signs, and criteria such as: the visible symptoms like crying or less visible ones like feeling lonely, which must occur regularly—perhaps daily. A lack of interest in work, responsibilities, and activities should be apparent every day, along with a significant increase or decrease in weight and disturbances in sleep patterns. Additionally, the person's restlessness should be noticeable to others, they should lack the energy needed for daily tasks, and they should feel worthless and have difficulty concentrating on daily tasks. Sometimes suicidal thoughts may also occur. Five of these nine symptoms must be present in the individual for at least two weeks, with one of them being either feelings of sadness and grief or a loss of interest and pleasure.
As I mentioned, Major Depressive Disorder is not the only type of depression, and this reference book highlights other types of depression as well. For example, Dysthymia or Persistent Depressive Disorder is a disorder in which the individual must have experienced depressive symptoms for at least two years, with one year of this period being in childhood and adolescence. Seasonal depression, depression resulting from substance abuse, depression resulting from other illnesses, depression resulting from childbirth, and ultimately bipolar depression types I and II are among the other types and forms of this common disorder. For example, in bipolar depression type I, the individual experiences a period of mania that occurs before the depressive state, and its duration must be at least one week, with the period of mania being at least four days and the period of depression being at least two weeks.
In all these cases, some symptoms and characteristics are prominent. In all cases, there is a sense of grief and sorrow, with or without crying; pessimism dominates the depressed person; they don't feel good about themselves and consider themselves guilty and shameful. They also lack interest and energy for daily tasks. Their sexual drive decreases, and they feel sleepy, even though their sleep is often irregular. Sometimes, they are pessimistic about their own bodies and have a negative view of themselves, and ultimately, these feelings and thoughts may be accompanied by suicidal ideation.
An important point to note is that depression, like anxiety, is a mood disorder, not a personality disorder. Mood disorders, unlike personality disorders, are experienced with greater intensity and severity and have such a profound impact on an individual's life in the short term that they often prevent them from performing many ordinary tasks. Personality disorders are not like this, of course. Among these, women suffer more from depression than men, although the expression of depressive symptoms is also higher in women. In men, we often see denial of the signs and symptoms of depression.
Another important point regarding depression is the role of culture in diagnosing its symptoms. Some cultures, which we call happy cultures, may attribute some natural signs of sadness and grief to depression. Different cultures also refer to different symptoms, which we recognize as symptoms of depression. For example, headaches in Latin American cultures, or chest tightness in Middle Eastern countries. These are all based on specific and highlighted research.
Another important point about depression is that it is primarily an emotional response to the past and what has happened in the past, unlike anxiety, which is usually an emotional response to the future. In this regard, in depression, we find emotions such as anger, guilt, shame, regret, and feelings of responsibility prominent. While when we are anxious, we are faced with feelings such as helplessness, restlessness, fear, worry, and so on.
(6) What are social networks? What does "online" mean?
Social networks are platforms that enable users to create virtual communities and share information, ideas, and other content. They have become an integral part of our online experience, with various platforms like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, Telegram, Clubhouse, and TikTok serving different functions. However, defining social networks and understanding their positive and negative aspects is not straightforward due to the continuous emergence of new platforms.
One way to define social networks is by their online nature and the requirement of an account for communication. Despite the diverse functions of different platforms, they all facilitate communication among users. For example, Myspace, which emerged in 2003, offered features like blogging and profile customization, preceding the dominance of Facebook, which officially launched in 2008. These platforms have transitioned from computers to smartphones, becoming essential sources of human interaction and information sharing.
The history of social networks dates back to the 1950s, with the emergence of activities related to remote communication systems, known as "phreaking." This term referred to individuals who engaged in activities related to communication systems during their free time. While the term may be akin to today's hackers, it highlights the early efforts to access information through communication systems. The widespread availability of the World Wide Web in 1991 further catalyzed the growth of social networks.
Social networks have not only impacted various aspects of personal, social, political, economic, cultural, and military domains but have also been associated with certain mental health disorders, particularly depression. Exploring the phenomenon of online depression requires understanding the meanings of social networks and depression, which will be addressed in subsequent discussions.
(7) What does online depression mean?
Online depression refers to a distinct form of depression experienced in the online environment, emphasizing its differentiation from common depression. There are two major approaches regarding ethical and mental health issues related to social networks. One advocates for redefining key ethical and mental health concepts in the context of social networks, while the other examines how the features of social networks can contribute to user depression. Factors such as increased global connections, altered perceptions of time and space, introduction of new forms of human interaction, potential for harassment, and reshaping of identity contribute to both positive and negative emotions, including depression, within social networks. Social networks are considered one of the main causes of the emergence and exacerbation of depression. In future sessions, strategies for managing online depression will be discussed.
(8) Summary
The session discusses various aspects related to depression, particularly its conceptualization and its connection to online platforms and social networks. It emphasizes the importance of understanding depression not just as a general emotional state but also as a complex interplay of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. The lecture also highlights different psychological theories regarding emotions, including sensory, behavioral, evaluative, and cognitive perspectives.
Furthermore, it suggests that while depression is a broad concept, the focus here is on the disorders that fall under the purview of psychiatry and psychotherapy. It underscores the significance of considering physiological and psychological symptoms in therapeutic models for depression.
Lastly, it explores the influence of social networks on depression, noting how these platforms have altered the ways humans interact and perceive themselves and others. It suggests that the emergence of new forms of social connection and potential for harassment and distress on these platforms can significantly impact what we understand as depression in the field of psychology.