Grob Rachel, Schlesinger Mark, Wise Meg, Pandhi Nancy
University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA.
Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA.
Qual Health Res. 2020 Jul;30(9):1392-1408. doi: 10.1177/1049732320914579. Epub 2020 May 4.
Depression manifests in distinct ways across the life course. Recent research emphasizes how depression impedes development during emerging adulthood. However, our study-based on 40 interviews with emerging adults from multiple regions in the United States, analyzed following grounded theory-suggests a more complex narrative. Increasing experience with cycles of depression can also catalyze (a) mature perspectives and coping mechanisms that protect against depression's lowest lows; (b) deeper self-knowledge and direction, which in turn promoted a coherent personal identity; and (c) emergence of a life purpose, which fostered attainment of adult roles, skill development, greater life satisfaction, and enriched identity. Our synthesis reveals how depression during emerging adulthood can function at once as toxin, potential antidote, and nutritional supplement fostering healthy development. Our central finding that young adults adapt to rather than recover from depression can also enrich resilience theory, and inform both social discourse and clinical practice.
抑郁症在人生的不同阶段有着不同的表现形式。近期研究强调了抑郁症如何在成年初期阻碍个体发展。然而，我们基于对来自美国多个地区的成年初期个体进行的40次访谈开展的研究，采用扎根理论进行分析后，呈现出了一个更为复杂的情况。抑郁症发作周期的经历增加也能够催化出：（a）成熟的观点和应对机制，从而抵御抑郁症的最低谷；（b）更深刻的自我认知和人生方向，进而促进连贯的个人身份认同；以及（c）人生目标的出现，这有助于实现成人角色、技能发展、更高的生活满意度以及丰富的身份认同。我们的综合分析揭示了成年初期的抑郁症如何既能像毒素一样起作用，又能作为潜在的解药以及促进健康发展的营养补充剂。我们的核心发现，即年轻人适应抑郁症而非从抑郁症中恢复过来，也能够丰富复原力理论，并为社会话语和临床实践提供参考。
