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Depression in Adolescents

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Depression in Adolescents: A Look at Effects, Causes, and Treatments

Christopher Marshall Jaffe

Vanderbilt University

Abstract

This paper describes and analyzes the very general term of depression, specifically keying on depression in adolescents. The paper is split into four main sections, the first being the definition of the problem. This section will discuss what the problem is and how it is defined in the scientific world. The second section will outline and present the effects and importance of depression on the individual, family, and society as a whole. The third section will discuss the causes of depression using theories such as the Hopelessness Theory of Depression, the Response Style Theory of Depression, and Beck’s Cognitive Theory of depression. And lastly the fourth section of this paper will discuss different treatments to the problem and their effectiveness.

Definition

Depression

Depression has been around before the ancient Greeks and even before it got deemed “depression” the famous, “Greek physician Hippocrates, called it melancholia” (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2012). It is so common in the psychological world now that some refer to it as the common cold. Depression can be described simply as, “A mood or emotional state that is marked by feelings of low self-worth or guilt and a reduced ability to enjoy life” (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2012). Because of the very general definition it is obvious why depression has been deemed the common cold. Almost all humans go through periods when they face what seems like insurmountable odds or times of hardship. The stress and moods that ensue often fit the emotional state that marks depression. The mental symptoms often present themselves simultaneously with many physical markers of

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