Does the average person experience depression throughout their life? In psychology, depression is a mental illness in which a person experiences deep, unshakable sadness and diminished interest in nearly all activities, it involves disturbances in emotion(Encarta). Depression is among the most common mental illnesses. About 8 percent of adults in the United States experience serious depression through out their lives (Encarta). Women are about three times more likely to be depressed than men (Encarta). The illness could come on slowly, then get progressively worse over time, or it could come on suddenly in weeks or even days ( Encarts). Depression would cause a person to be sad all of the time and they may often cry (Encarta). Things that would usually bring that person pleasure no longer do. Symptoms of depression vary with a persons age. Depression could be caused by something obvious such as marriage, financial , or personal problems, but most psychologist believe depression results from an interaction between stressful life events and a persons biological and psychological vulnerabilities. (Encarta).A cross sectional study of symptom attribution and recognition of depression and anxiety in primary care showed:[Different styles of symptom attribution are strongly associated with different rates of detection of depression and anxiety. Patients who make psychologies attributions are more likely to get a psychological diagnosis ; the stronger there tendency to make such attributions the more likely such a diagnosis becomes. A normalising style of attribution has the opposite effect, and the patients tendency to normalize or minimise his or her symptoms the less likely she is to be seen as depressed or anxious by the general practitioner. Somatic attributions, which are least common, had no measurable effect on diagnosed rates, though this may have been because of lack of statistical power.These lines are quoted from the Br...
