1. Identify the diagnostic criteria for depression based on the DSM.

Question

2. Explain the Diathesis-stress model for depression. Provide details in your answer.

Answer 1

1. The DSM-5 lists the following diagnostic criteria for depression:

- Depressed mood, most of the day, nearly every day. This can be indicated by subjective report (e.g. feeling sad, empty, hopeless) or by observation (e.g. tearfulness).
- Markedly diminished interest or pleasure in almost all activities, most of the day, nearly every day.
- Significant weight loss when not dieting or weight gain, or decrease or increase in appetite nearly every day.
- Insomnia or hypersomnia nearly every day.
- Psychomotor agitation or retardation nearly every day (observable by others, not merely subjective feelings of restlessness or being slowed down).
- Fatigue or loss of energy nearly every day.
- Feelings of worthlessness or excessive or inappropriate guilt nearly every day.
- Diminished ability to think or concentrate, or indecisiveness, nearly every day.
- Recurrent thoughts of death, recurrent suicidal ideation without a specific plan, a suicide attempt or a specific plan for committing suicide.

To be diagnosed with depression, an individual must experience five or more of these symptoms for at least two weeks, and they must cause functional impairment or distress.

2. The diathesis-stress model is a theory that proposes that a person's susceptibility to a disorder (diathesis) arises from a combination of genetic or biological vulnerabilities and environmental stressors. For depression, this means that a person may have a genetic or biological predisposition to the disorder, but it may not manifest unless they experience significant stressors in their environment.

For example, a person with a family history of depression may have inherited genetic variations that make them more susceptible to the disorder. However, they may not become depressed unless they experience significant life stressors such as the loss of a job or relationship difficulties. The diathesis-stress model can help explain why different people may experience the same environmental stressors but only some of them develop depression.

The model also suggests that the severity of depression may be influenced by the interaction of the diathesis and the stressors. For instance, a person with a high genetic vulnerability might require only minor stressors to develop depression, whereas a person with lower genetic vulnerability might need more significant stressors to experience depression.

Overall, the diathesis-stress model highlights the complex interplay between genetic and environmental factors in the development of depression and is a useful framework for understanding the heterogeneity of the disorder.