Depression Negotiation Hypothesis: What It Is And What It Proposes
Depression is, along with anxiety, one of the most prevalent psychological disorders in the general population.
Over the last decades, countless studies have been carried out with the intention of explaining and understanding this pathology better and better, so that we have more effective treatments. Let’s discover what one of those explanations in this regard consists of: the bargaining hypothesis of depression.
There are many psychological currents, and each of them tries to explain the different mental disorders from their perspective. One of them is evolutionary psychology.
This school is the creator of the depression negotiation hypothesis, as an explanatory model of said psychopathology. To better understand this concept, below We will delve into some of the positions that various authors have maintained regarding depression..
The author who proposes the bargaining hypothesis model of depression is Edward H. Hagen. He maintains that depression is nothing more than a state of emotional strike in which the person who suffers from it, unconsciously, chooses to cease all positive emotional behavior, with the goal that the people around us (or the situation itself) itself), in response, cease the activities that they were maintaining over time and that have caused the imbalance.
The depression negotiation hypothesis, therefore, is also known as the strike hypothesis, because in this case our emotional state would be acting like the workers of a company who, in search of a series of improvements (or to avoid a potential worsening of their situation) decide to abandon their duties to provoke a situation of tension in which the other party ends up giving in and accepting their demands.
Therefore, According to Hagen, depression would be acting as a form of manipulation (obviously unconscious) of the individual who suffers from this pathology towards the rest.demanding in some way that they stop all the behaviors that are affecting them and that have ended up triggering this kind of mental strike that is preventing them from carrying out normally all the routine tasks of their life, from leisure to social interaction behaviors or self-care (hygiene, restful sleep or nutrition, etc.).
To better understand the implications of the depression negotiation hypothesis, it is useful to know the other perspectives with which it is in contrast, so that we can establish a comparison between both points of view. Therefore, we are going to better describe some of the models that are used within evolutionary psychology and that attempt to explain depression and its symptomatology as an adaptive reaction of our body.
These researchers maintain that the symptoms of sadness and a low mood have an evolutionary function, to cope with a series of stimuli and situations and process them correctly. However, If this system fails and that mood becomes chronic, resulting in depression, the system would cease to be adaptive.since it would have given rise to a state in which the symptoms would be harmful to the subject.
Some authors talk about the importance of depression as an indicator of psychological pain (just as fever and other signs exist to warn of a physical ailment in the body). When experiencing depressive symptoms, Our mind would be warning us to stop all those activities that may be generating it.functioning as a kind of alarm whose objective is for us to regain stability as soon as possible, distancing ourselves from harmful elements.
However, those in favor of it being a non-adaptive mechanism claim that this system does not work, since depressive symptomatology in its most serious state ceases to be a mere warning signal, and becomes a serious symptomatology that little by little consumes the person. individual who suffers from it, affecting their rest, their diet, their social relationships and, ultimately, all levels of life of the person, which obviously not only does not help them, but harms them tremendously.
The case of postpartum depression
According to Hagen’s approaches, there is a specific case in which the negotiation hypothesis of depression applies better than in any other, and that is postpartum depression. The explanation that Edward Hagen gives is that women who experience this disorder generally see themselves in a situation of lack of support from the environment that requiresso, unconsciously, your body would develop depressive symptoms as a form of strike in search of the help it needs.
In this sense, postpartum depression would be an automatic alarm of the body and mind, an indicator for the mother herself, who would be warned that the resources she has to face a situation as demanding as raising a child are being insufficient. This effect is even more aggravated in cases where children suffer from an illness or disease, since the physical and mental cost of moving forward with the situation is even greater.
At this point, the hypothesis of the denial of depression would link with another theory of evolutionary psychology that, although controversial in its approach, follows a logic. This is the parental investment hypothesis, developed by Robert Trivers. What Trivers claims, among other things, is that the cost of parenting to parents will only be realized if the return is greater, that is, if the investment is profitable, speaking in terms of economics.
This theory was applied to times when the human being was just another animal, in a hostile environment, and sometimes it was not possible to obtain the necessary resources to raise the offspring, so efforts were focused on the next creature. . Adapted to the present, What the author is telling us is that postpartum depression would warn the mother of this dangerso that he could seek the necessary help, so that the situation could be reversed and thus he could raise his son satisfactorily.
Seeking help
In the previous point we have focused the hypothesis of the negotiation of depression in cases of postpartum depression, but in reality this theory could be applied to any of the areas in which this pathology appears, since ultimately the function is exactly the same. And depression would be a call for help both for the affected person themselves and for everyone around them: their partner, their family, their friends, their co-workers or any other person in their circle.
It is important not to confuse grief with depression, since there are life situations that produce this marked symptomatology of low mood, such as a romantic breakup, the loss of a loved one, a dismissal, and many others. The problematic thing would be the chronicification of these symptoms after a time. If months pass and the person still does not experience improvement, we should consider the possibility of a pathology and therefore the depression negotiation hypothesis would be applied.
That a person has a very low mood and constantly experiences the feeling of sadness following the death of a family member, for example, is logical, if they had a good bond with them. The strange thing would be if this symptomatology were not present, in any case. However, if months, or even years, pass, and this symptomatology does not reduce and even worsens, all indicators would point to the fact that the person has stopped experiencing ordinary grief and is suffering from depression, which is why they would need aid.
Of course, We must not ignore the importance of requesting the help of a psychologist to overcome depression, since the help and support of family and friends is always necessary, but sometimes it is not enough and therapy is required with a professional who is the one who gives the patient the tools to get out of it. move forward and leave depressive symptoms behind once and for all.
And the training of a psychologist provides him with the ability to carry out this demanding and complex task, something for which non-professionals do not have to be trained.
