En kvalitativ undersøgelse af depression i senmoderniteten

Abstract

This project aims to understand depression as a social phenomenon caused by the individualism in the west in the late modernity. As such the project is centred on two questions. The one question is focused on whether or not depression can be seen as linked to the individualism in the late modernity. The second question is also connected to the individualism in the late modernity, but does raise a thesis, that individualism can lead to anomia, and that anomian circumstances in turn can lead to depression. In the search for answers to these questions, I interviewed five persons who have had personal experience with depression. Based on their experiences I concluded that depression can be understood as linked to the individualism in the late modernity and that anomia can cause depression. Thereby it shows that depression does have social roots and can be seen as linked to society’s ability to social integration.