Losing oneself: Lack of self in depression and its recurrence

Losing one's sense of self is often reported by individuals with depression, but there has been minimal empirical attention devoted to this phenomenon. This study investigated "lack of self" in depression, defined as a self-concept that is empty, unknown, vague, and/or disconnected. Participants consisted of 248 adults who were either currently, previously, or never depressed and completed measures of depression severity, disturbances in self-concept, and rumination. Previously depressed participants then entered a one-year follow-up period to monitor for relapse. Currently depressed participants endorsed greater lack of self than previously depressed participants, who in turn endorsed greater lack of self than never depressed individuals. Lack of self was found to be uniquely associated with depression when controlling for other disturbances in sense of self. Ruminative brooding was significantly associated with lack of self, independent of depression severity. Finally, among previously depressed individuals, greater lack of self at baseline predicted an increased likelihood of relapse within the one-year follow-up period. Collectively, these findings support lack of self as a clinically relevant phenomenon in depression and highlight the significance of sense of self in the treatment and prevention of depression.