Metaphorical identity construction of depression sufferers on Chinese social media

While prior research has documented various metaphors of depression, their role in identity construction in online communication remains underexplored, particularly in a Chinese cultural context. Drawing on a corpus-assisted analysis of Chinese Weibo posts, this study investigates how depression sufferers use metaphors of "depression" and "self" to construct identities. Metaphors were identified following the Metaphor Identification Procedure (MIP) and coded by two trained coders, with cross-checking and further discussion involving three native Chinese speakers. Results revealed that "depression" was conceptualized as CONTAINER, ENEMY, DESCENT, DARKNESS, WEIGHT, and EVIL BEING, while "self" was conceptualized as OBJECT, CONTAINER, MACHINE, and EVIL BEING. Based on the relations (i.e., self and depression, self and others, and self and society) entailed in these metaphors, there were six identities constructed by depression sufferers, negotiating with the overarching social identity of "People with Depression". Identities such as "the Trapped," "the Repressed," "the Indifferent," "the Useless," and "the Deviant" reinforce the passive dimensions of depression sufferers, whereas "the Fighter" identity challenges the dominant stigmatized perceptions of depression sufferers. By identifying culturally situated depression metaphors and their associated identity positions on Chinese social media, this study underscores metaphor's role in conceptualizing depression and advances research on metaphor-identity dynamics, offering insights for mental health interventions in clinical therapies.