From depression to rigidity: what lies behind popular psychological terms

1. Depression

The name of this mental disorder comes from the Latin deprimo, which means "to crush", "to suppress". And in general, this word fully describes the situation of a person immersed in depression. It is characterized by three main symptoms:

deterioration in mood and inability to rejoice;
thinking disorders;
motor retardation.

Contrary to some beliefs, depression is not a situation where a person is “depressed” because he has “nothing to do”. And the statement that “no one suffered from depression before, it’s just fashionable now,” also does not correspond to the truth. This disease was described in antiquity under the name "melancholy".

Depression requires treatment as it worsens a person's quality of life and increases the risk of suicide, especially in adolescents.

2. Frustration

This word describes the anxiety that occurs when desires diverge from possibilities. Of course, frustration does not appear every time you wanted a Bentley, but only enough for a bicycle. This is a traumatic situation that generates frustration, anxiety, irritation, despair. Due to failure, after which the person did not get what he wanted, he feels cheated.

In a state of frustration, people often continue to fight for the desired result.

Frustration is typical, for example, for women who have been unsuccessfully trying to get pregnant for a long time and have tried all options, including IVF.

At the same time, controlled frustration is used by psychologists as one of the methods of therapy.

3. Deprivation

This term refers to a condition in which a person cannot meet basic needs, for example, does not have access to housing, food, medical care, communication, and so on.

You may have heard of sensory deprivation cameras that isolate a person from any sensation. They are used for meditation and relaxation, but many experience anxiety and anxiety when they are deprived of their usual sensations.

With deprivation in the psychological sense, a person is deprived of vital things, and this is reflected in his condition.

Deprivation differs from frustration in a mechanism: deprivation arises from the lack of the ability to satisfy desires, while frustration is associated with failure on the way to goals. Deprivation is a more serious condition that leads to aggression, self-destruction, depression.

4. Sublimation

This defense mechanism of the psyche was first described by Sigmund Freud. The psychologist suggested that in order to relieve stress, a person redirects energy from one area of activity to another. First of all, he considered the transformation of unsatisfied sexual attraction, for example, into creativity.

Freud, in particular, attributed the genius of Leonardo da Vinci to the fact that the artist and inventor did not show interest in sex, and his creations are the result of sublimation.

5. Victim

These are features in human behavior that supposedly attract the aggression of others to him. The concept is widely used in Russian criminology and in the authorities that are supposed to protect victims of crime. As an illustration, the argument is often used that, for example, a rapist will attack the woman who is afraid and let go of the one who will fight him back.

In the West, this term was criticized back in the 70s, and now it is practically not used in the form in which it is used in Russia.

First, such an approach shifts responsibility for the crime onto the victim, although the decision whether to commit a wrongful act or not is always made by the subject, not the object. Secondly, each criminal has its own set of qualities that provoke aggression.

Also, the concept of victimhood is based on the belief in the justice of the world: “if you behave yourself correctly, then nothing bad will happen to you; if you became a victim, then you behaved incorrectly. " Hence the prevalence of the position "it is my own fault" in relation to the victim. It helps to calm down, to convince myself that "bad things happen to bad people, this will not happen to me, I'm good." However, “correct” behavior is not insurance against trouble.

6. Gestalt

It is a German word for an image that is more than just the sum of its parts. For example, a person is able to recognize a melody even if its tonality changes, or to correctly read a text in which the letters are rearranged. That is, a melody is not just a set of notes, but a text - letters.

Gestalt psychology is built on these images, within the framework of which it is argued that many internal and external factors act on a person's perception.

The psyche organizes experience into comprehensible forms. That is why two people, looking at the same object, can see completely different things.

Depending on the conditions, the reality surrounding a person is divided into a background and important figures. For example, if he is hungry, he will highlight a burger among the objects around him. A well-fed person will pay attention to something else, and the burger here will be only part of the background.

Although Gestalt therapy is not a direct descendant of Gestalt psychology, it focuses precisely on this model of perception. The psychologist helps the patient to work on self-awareness, understand what is bothering him, work through the situation and let it go. The principle of "here and now" is used: current emotions and thoughts matter.

The gestalt that is recommended to be closed is an unfinished process, persistently sitting in the memory and causing the desire to replay the situation.

In this case, it is supposed to either finish what you started, for example, make peace with a friend, a quarrel with whom has haunted the last 10 years, or work on your feelings in order to break out of the vicious circle.

7. Procrastination

This is the name of the tendency to constantly postpone planned things for later, even urgent and important ones. This condition is often mistakenly confused with laziness. But a lazy person simply does not want to do anything and does not worry about it. The procrastinator suffers and agonizes, but still finds a million excuses why the planned will wait.

Procrastination can be more exhausting than delayed tasks. In addition to this, the regular failure of deadlines creates a lot of problems related to the quality of work, earnings, and so on.

8. Rigidity

Cognitive rigidity implies the inability to rebuild the picture of the world in the head when new information appears. If a person believes that the Earth is flat, even flying into orbit with the contemplation of a blue ball will not convince him. With motivational rigidity, people are guided by their usual needs and ways of meeting them. You will probably find several prominent representatives in the queue to pay for a landline phone from a passbook.

Finally, affective rigidity implies an emotional fixation on something. For example, in the morning on the tram you stepped on your foot, and all day you are angry with the "boor", retelling the story to colleagues. Another aspect of affective rigidity is the strict connection between event and emotion. When the situation repeats, people will experience the same feelings as the first time.