Characteristics of Clinical Depression (AQA GCSE Psychology)

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Feeling sad is part of the human experience; it is a normal aspect of what it means to be human
Sadness is not something that is in itself ‘abnormal’, in fact, it should be embraced as evidence that you are indeed human
People feel sad for several reasons such as:

Sadness tends to be a temporary state (although it may not feel like it at the time): the feelings pass, time moves on and people start to feel better
When sadness does not go away, when someone starts to feel sad every day and about everything then this may be clinical depression i.e. a doctor would likely reach this diagnosis if presented with these symptoms
Depression (although widely experienced by many people) is classified as abnormal behaviour as it is not usual - or mentally healthy - to feel sad all the time
Depression is sometimes known as the ‘black dog’ which stalks the sufferer:

unlike sadness, depression is unpredictable
it may creep up on someone during good times or when nothing particularly sad or difficult has happened

Depression is a disorder because it intrudes upon every aspect of a person’s life and prevents them from functioning properly

Unipolar depression is the most common form of depression and (according to WHO statistics) 280 million people worldwide suffer from depression at any given time
The characteristics of unipolar depression - according to the International Classification of Diseases - include:
- Reduced energy levels: this could lead to someone being unable/unwilling to go to work, to socialise, even to be able to get out of bed
- Sleep dysfunction: this could be manifest as an increase in the need to sleep, insomnia or premature waking
- Irregular appetite: overeating for comfort person or being unable to eat
- Low mood (dysphoria): overwhelming sadness, possible anger, feelings of hopelessness and despair
- Loss of interest in activities or hobbies that once brought joy
- Negative views of the world and the self: the belief that everything will turn out badly and there is no hope
- Loss of self-esteem and self-confidence
- Lack of motivation and the inability to achieve even very simple goals or tasks
- Difficulty making decisions

Bipolar depression is so-called because it involves the sufferer swinging between two extreme states of emotion and activity

Bipolar depression used to be known as ‘manic depression’: when the sufferer is in the ‘manic’ phase they are likely to:

Experience hugely ‘high’ feelings of euphoria
Engage in high levels of activity: creatively, energetically, in a frenzy
Display a delusional feeling of self-importance
Show changes in levels of sleep and appetite
Have racing thoughts and speech, often talking over others, possibly seeming incoherent

The manic phase may last weeks or months; when it is over the depressive phase follows, bringing with it the behaviours common to unipolar depression outlined above (e.g. ‘flat’ mood, feelings of hopelessness, low energy, feeling tired all the time)
Bipolar depression is highly heritable (unlike unipolar depression which may either be inherited or a result of external factors)
There is no known cure for bipolar depression although sufferers can manage their illness via CBT and drugs therapy

Here is an example of a question you might be asked on this topic - for AO1.

AO1: You need to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of key concepts, ideas, theories and research.

Question: Describe one difference between unipolar depression and bipolar depression. [2]

Model answer:

With unipolar depression a low mood is continuous whereas with bipolar depression mood fluctuates between euphoria and dysphoria.
People with unipolar depression experience low mood and often low energy: those with bipolar experience low, normal and manic moods.

to absolutely everything:

the (exam) results speak for themselves:

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