Explore how the concept of “adaptive signal” provides a fresh understanding of depression, highlighting its potential role as a meaningful response to challenging life circumstances and offering new perspectives on mental health.
Depression is a common experience that has been described for centuries. However, the way we view and explain depression has evolved over time. In recent years, depression is often viewed as a disease or dysfunction, but this perspective can contribute to the stigma surrounding it, as well as hurt our ability to respond to depressive experiences in a healthy and constructive way.
According to a new study published in Social Science and Medicine, one alternative way to look at depression is as an “adaptive signal” that serves an important purpose in our lives. From this perspective, depression is a natural response to an unfulfilling life, which can motivate us to make important changes.
Traditionally, explanations for depression have ranged from spiritual causes to biochemical imbalances in the brain. The rise of biological explanations in the 20th century, fueled by pharmaceutical marketing and advancements in neuroscience and genetics, has dominated the discourse surrounding depression. However, this emphasis on biology and genetics has unintended negative consequences, including increased stigma and reduced hope for recovery.
While there can be be biological causes behind depression, the sole focus of biological explanations has led to a huge rise in pharmaceutical solutions. It’s easier for psychiatrists to just “prescribe you a pill,” rather than work to find the roots of where the depression is coming from, including addressing sociological and cultural factors that have led to the overall rise in mental health problems. The over-prescribing of psychiatric medicine is also due to financial incentives, including unsavory partnerships between doctors, insurance companies, and pharmaceutical companies.
Research has shown that when people encounter genetic or neurobiological explanations for a trait or behavior, they tend to believe that the trait or behavior is fixed and unchangeable. They begin to believe “this is just the way I am,” and they are less likely to try to change important habits and behaviors that may be contributing to their ailments. This essentialist thinking can lead to stigmatizing attitudes and create a divide between individuals with depression and others. Alternative narratives, such as the biopsychosocial model, which considers biological, socioenvironmental, and psychological factors, have been proposed but are not widely known or understood.
To address these shortcomings, researchers propose a different approach that highlights the potential utility of depression. This perspective suggests that depression serves an important function and can be seen as an adaptive signal. Evolutionary theorists have proposed various functions of depression, including signaling a need for help, conserving energy, and facilitating problem-solving. Psychotherapeutic perspectives also suggest that depression may result from conflicts in relationships or as a response to perceived loss.
Beliefs about the functionality and malleability of traits and emotions play a crucial role in resilience and adaptive attitudes. Studies on growth mindsets and stress mindsets have shown that believing in the malleability and adaptiveness of emotions can lead to positive mental health outcomes. By framing depression as a functional signal, we can instill hope, curiosity, and motivation to seek help, while avoiding the negative consequences associated with strictly biological explanations.
In a recent study, participants with a history of depression were randomly assigned to watch videos explaining depression as a disease with risk factors or as a functional signal. The results showed that the participants who received the signal explanation experienced less self-stigma, had greater belief in their ability to overcome depression, and held more adaptive beliefs about depression. These effects were particularly pronounced among female participants, who also showed a greater growth mindset toward depression after hearing the signal explanation.
These findings suggest that framing depression as an adaptive signal can benefit individuals with depression and help combat the harmful consequences of popular explanations. By promoting this perspective of depression, we can foster a better understanding of the condition, motivate people to seek treatment, change key habits, and give people a sense of strength, hope, and resilience.
In conclusion, depression should not solely be seen as a disease or dysfunction but rather as a signal that serves a valuable purpose and function in life. From this perspective, we can begin to see depression as a stepping stone to a better life, rather than a debilitating condition that we are simply doomed to forever.
Enter your email to stay updated on new articles in self improvement: