Personality types prone to depression (+ how to cope)

In this article, we will discuss the topic, “ personality types prone to depression”, introduction to personality, causes and characteristics of personality, depression and it’s a broad classification with signs and symptoms, personality types and depression, treatment for depression and some frequently asked questions about the topic. 

Personality types prone to depression are:

• Introvert personality
• Creative and artistic personality type
• Diplomats type
• Explorer type
• Neurotic individual
• Emotionally sensitive one
• Analyst
• Overachiever and Perfectionist

Personality

The word personality is derived from a Latin word, persona, which means mask. It is the distinctive way of how an individual behaves, thinks and reacts to different situations. The general style of interaction with the world out there and with others. 

According to Allport (1937), Personality is the dynamic organisation within the individual of those psychological systems that determine his unique adjustment to his/ her environment.

According to R.B Cattell (1950), Personality is that which permits the prediction of what a person will do in a given situation. 

According to Eysenck (1971), Personality is more or less stable and enduring organisation of a person’s character, temperament, intellect and physique which determine his/ her unique adjustment to the environment.

Characteristic of Personality

• Personality is unique in the individual.
•  It is persistent and consistent in nature.
• Personality is the dynamic orientation of an individual to the external environment.
• The social context and the setting influence the personality of an individual.
• It has an impact on the behaviour and action of the person.
• There are multiple and varied expressions of a personality.

Factors affecting the personality of an individual.

There are a number of factors that determine the personality of an individual and with the integration of all these factors, there is a resulting effect on the personality.

Biological Factor

It is one of the most important foundations of one’s personality. Genetics plays a significant role in determining the behaviour as well as the personality of an individual. Children inherited the traits and features of their parents such as intelligence, openness and etc. Genetic factors account for 40-50% of the variation in people.

Social Factor

Social settings and the culture where one is brought up also impact the personality development of an individual. The environment encompasses different levels stretching from one’s own family to culture at large. There are notable differences between individuals belonging to individualistic culture and collectivism.

Psychological Factor

Interest and attitude of an individual shapes the personality of a person. Such factors directly influence the behaviour of an individual and their own personality development. Certain other factors are interest, motives and etc.

Situational Factor

How an individual behaves is determined by the situation itself most of the time. Based on external stimuli, people behave accordingly.

With the interplay of all these factors, it determines the personality of the individual. Thus, it is shaped by both nature and nurture: the inherited traits and the environment interaction.

Depression

Depression is believed to be the key cause of disability around the world. It is a mood disorder characterised by the feeling of persistent and prolonged low mood, sadness, loss of interest in pleasurable activities: anhedonia, feeling down and low throughout the day, weeks and months. 

Although the feeling of sadness and loss of pleasure is familiar and a normal feeling to every one of us, depression is something that persists and causes severe impairment in an individual’s life. It can affect people from any age group ranging from children, adolescent, adult and geriatric population.

The duration of depressive episodes differs and varies from each individual wherein, for some cases, it lasts for about 2 weeks while in others it might persist for months and years.

Symptoms of Depression

Despite Depression being a mood disorder and causing severe impairment in the individual, there are other associated effects of depression in the everyday functioning of the individual. 

It can take a toll on one’s psychological health, physical health, job performance, social relation and overall well-being. 

The three noting symptoms of Depression are:

• Fatigability, tiredness and feeling of exhaustion
• Anhedonia, loss of interest in pleasurable activities
• Depressed mood or prolonged sadness

Some of the other signs and symptoms of Depression are:

• Sustained and prolonged depressed mood
• Loss of interest in normally pleasurable activities or those that one enjoys doing
• Loss of sexual drives
• Fluctuations in body weight
• Disruption in sleep cycle resulting in insomnia and hypersomnia
• Muscle agitation, restlessness and twitches
• Disruption and disturbance in speech
• Fatigue and low energy in performing daily task
• A feeling of worthlessness and excessive guilt
• Recurrent thoughts on death, suicide and attempts for suicide.
• Impairment in concentration and attention

These are some of the major signs and symptoms of Depression. The severity and the interference of these symptoms differ and varied individually owing to other underlying reasons.

Personality and Depression

There are certain personality types vulnerable to depression but no concrete association between personality traits and depression. 

Some of the personality type vulnerable to depression are:

High in Neuroticism 

Those individuals who are high in neuroticism, highly emotional sensitive are the personality that is more likely to have depression. Since they are prone to emotional fluctuations and driven by negative life events, they are likely to suffer and be diagnosed with depression.

Introverted personality

Individuals who are introvert by nature are more inclined to suffer from negative events and depression. They are more vulnerable to negative events thus making them and resulting in higher chances and likelihood of recall of negative events. Apart from depression, there is also a higher chance of introverts bothered by the feeling of anxiety and sadness.

Overachieving perfectionist personality

Since perfectionists are bothered by the idea of having everything around them neat, organised and structured, they are highly critical and have a higher likelihood and chances of vulnerability to negativity. 

They often take criticisms and flaws to their heart. At times, their self worth and esteem are based on the validation of others and thus reported to be highly perfectionist. Many times, they also suffer from life disappointment and seldom live up to expectation.

Literature studies have found that perfectionists are vulnerable to both depression and anxiety. The association between the two is often traced to their life satisfaction where such people seldom experience satisfaction with their life and link to all kinds of mental as well as psychological disturbance. 

Daydreamer and creative personality type

Creativity and Mood disorders are often associated and it’s found through research studies that people who are a dreamer and have vivid daydreams are likely to suffer from depression and other related disorders. The flight of ideas and creativity tend to make the person hypersensitive, observant and are willing to engage in contemplation as well as ruminations. Many creative individuals possess multiple skills and talents, however, are survivors of mood disorders.

A research finding has revealed that people who are inherited with artistic skills like poets, writers and creative art workers are four to five times more likely to suffer from mood disorders. Such as Kurt Cobain, Sylvia Plath and other artists.

Analyst personality type

Such people are overthinkers and most of them are treated by cognitive therapy where the focus is on replacing their irrational and distorted thought patterns with more logical thoughts. Since a potential symptom of depression is difficulty in thinking and other cognitive processes, it makes the analyst personality type vulnerable to depressive illnesses.

Diplomats

They are people who are more objective and lose touch of their feelings. Since diplomats are wired and known to think more objectively, they are vulnerable to depressive episodes. For them, treatments that focus on allowing them to vent out their feelings without any objective guidance helps in getting rid of the depressive symptoms.

Sentinel Personality

Such people being emotionally sensitive are often the victim of depression and other related mood disorders. Their inability to muster the energy and failing to circle against the hopelessness makes them prone to depression.

Explorer Personality type

Explorer is always in hunt for things that bring in the joy and they are prone to depression because of their failure in getting the thing that satisfies them.

Coping up with depression

Despite the vulnerability, there are certain coping mechanisms that can help the person to get rid of depression. 

Some of the coping mechanisms of depression are:

Seeking professional help

The immediate treatment option available for all is to seek professional help. When the depressive symptoms last more than 2 weeks, a treatment option available and accessible to everyone is to seek professional help. Reaching out for professional help helps the person to better manage depressive symptoms. 

Being honest and confronting the symptoms

There is no cure in hiding the symptoms and the associated feelings. One can simply get rid of the depressive symptoms by being honest with the feeling and sharing it with the professional so that help can be offered to the person in accordance with their case.

Staying calm

When there are any kind of depressive symptoms observable in the person, there is no good in panicking the symptoms rather one can stay calm and seek help that can help them. 

Breathing and Relaxation

Breathing exercises and relaxation can calm down the effects of depression in the person and make them feel much lighter. Although it is not the ultimate solution or a fix to all kinds of problems, it can soften and reduce the severity of the symptoms associated with depression. 

Practising self-care

Self-care techniques can be soothing and healing for the person dealing with depressive symptoms. It can be a simple task of simply spending extra time with oneself or a treat to oneself. These little things help the person to feel much better and relaxed. 

These are some of the simple techniques one can follow to get rid of the depressive symptoms and to reduce the severity of it. Although seeking professional help is the ideal treatment options, one can also opt for other techniques to feel better, relaxed and soften the depressive symptoms. 

FAQs: Personality types prone to depression

Conclusion

In this article, we have discussed the topic, “ personality types prone to depression”, introduction to personality, causes and characteristics of personality, depression and it’s a broad classification with signs and symptoms, personality types and depression, treatment for depression and some frequently asked questions about the topic. 

For more information and details, follow the sites lined below

https://www.healthcentral.com/article/personality-types-prone-to-depression-which-one-are-you

https://www.16personalities.com/articles/dealing-with-depression-in-a-time-of-isolation

Bibliography

Kennard, J. (2018). Personality Types Prone to Depression: Which One Are You? healthcentral. https://www.healthcentral.com/article/personality-types-prone-to-depression-which-one-are-you

Neurohealth Associates. (2018). Two Personality Types that Are Most Susceptible to Depression. neurohealth. https://nhahealth.com/two-personality-types-that-are-most-susceptible-to-depression/

Press Association. (2019). Personality types susceptible to depression pinpointed by scientists. eveningexpress. https://www.eveningexpress.co.uk/news/personality-types-susceptible-to-depression-pinpointed-by-scientists/