An ethological description of depression

During the last 20 years ethological psychiatric research has developed a working method for the systematic and quantitative recording and analysis of the nonverbal behaviour of psychiatric patients in their actual hospital environment. In this study this method was used to follow changes in the behaviour pattern of 5 depressed, hospitalized patients during their entire hospital stay. Parallel to ethological recording, patients were rated according to Hamilton twice a week. The patients who were most depressed at admission showed the greatest behavioural changes; the changes were most conspicuous in the behavioural elements representing social contact and communication. One patient who obviously developed a new depression during the observation period without this being recognized by the Hamilton rating or the clinical control, seemed to have been better described by the behaviour recording. This study shows that ethological psychiatric methods are very suitable for obtaining a better basis for the observations of the staff in the ward environment.