Theories Of Depression

Depression is a condition that causes serious symptoms, which affect your mood, thinking, behavior and just any of the basic daily activities. According to ADAA (Anxiety and Depression Association of America), depression is one of the most frequent mental disorders in the United States. It is stated, that around 3 to 5 percent of adults suffer from severe depression and the number of children encountering the symptoms is of a great concern. The core symptoms of the intense depression are a loss of interest or pleasure and depressed mood. Gradually, other alternative symptoms may follow like weight gain or loss, insomnia, fatigue, inability to concentrate and suicidality, feeling of worthlessness. However, according to DSM-IV (American Psychiatric

Meanwhile, Albert Ellis and Aaron T. Beck were the key figures involved in the development of a cognitive-behavioral theory, setting the basic tenets for the approach. This method has its origins from both psychodynamic and behavioral theory and comprises a number of different therapies that have some similar elements in common.
The main postulate of the psychodynamic approach is deriving from the belief that every mental dysfunction that takes place is due to the conflict between unconscious and subconscious processes. Thereby, such processes affect one’s behavior, emotions and eventually makes an unaware individual see the world from a negative viewpoint. Since this approach was mainly based on Freud’s earlier psychoanalysis theory, it comprises a number of ideas concerning interrelations of the mind’s forces. It is assumed, that an unconscious mind has its own divisions, which create one’s whole identity. However, at a certain age, these unconscious parts may come into conflict with one another and make a so-called fixation where a

The short-term symptom relief was found during the early cognitive-behavior approach therapies based on the psychodynamic background (Ellis and Beck). However, more and more methods were discovered over the years, which resulted in a variety of procedures today. Rational-emotive behavior therapy (REBT) is regarded to be a premiere example of the cognitive-behavioral approach. At the core of REBT is the assumption that human thinking and emotion are significantly interrelated. According to Ellis’s model, symptoms are the consequences of a person’s irrational belief systems regarding particular activating experiences or events. The goal of therapy is to identify and challenge the irrational beliefs at the root of emotional disturbance. REBT assumed that individuals possess innate and acquired tendencies to think and to behave irrationally. Thus, to maintain a state of emotional health, individuals must constantly monitor and challenge their basic belief systems. REBT employs a multidimensional approach that incorporates cognitive, emotive, and behavioral