This paper presents a very brief discussion of the symptoms of major depression disorder and how it is that this mood disorder, like many others, can be either a learned behavior or a biological behavior. In this regard, the American Psychiatric Association (DSM-IV, 2000), reports that five or more of the following symptoms must be present during the same two week period to diagnose a person as having major depression disorder, and the symptoms must represent a change from previous functioning. These symptoms are: (1) depressed mood most of the day, nearly every day; (2) markedly diminished interest or pleasure in all, or almost all, activities most of the day, nearly every day (as indicated by either subjective account or observation made by others);(3) significant weight loss when not dieting or weight gain; (4)insomnia or hypersomnia nearly every day; (5) psychomotor agitation or retardation nearly every day; (6) fatigue or loss of energy nearly every day; (7) feelings of worthlessness or excessive or inappropriate guilt (which may be delusional) nearly every day (not merely self-reproach or guilt about being sick); (8) diminished ability to think or concentrate, or indecisiveness, nearly every day (either by subjective account or as observed by others); and (9) recurrent thoughts of death (not just fear of dying), recurrent suicidal ideation without a specific plan, or a suicide attempt or a specific plan for committing suicide.
The psychological literature states that major depression, like many other psychological disorders, can be either learned or biochemical in nature (Barlow & Duand, 2004). This means that the key causative factor in the development of the disorder is either learning mechanisms (e.g., reinforcement, modeling, etc.) or brain structure/brain chemistry mechanisms. In other words, both of these variables can produce the disorder and which of these factors produces it can vary depending upon a variety of var...