Depression

• Americans are more depressed than Russians, even though Russians are more self-reflective.*

Two University of Michigan psychological scientists found that: 1️⃣ *Russians were much more likely to be self-reflective: they think more about their fundamental nature and essence than Americans. But this Russian character trait was not linked to depression.* 2️⃣ Less analytical Americans had more symptoms of depression than Russians 3️⃣ Russians are more detached than while recalling a bad experience. ____🅰️ Russians thought about the bad event in a healthier way: ________(1) keeping more psychological distance from the emotional details. ________(2) analyzed their feelings, but with detachment, and this detachment buffered Russians from depression. 4️⃣ Like Eastern cultures, Russians embrace sadness and pity instead of trying to block it like Americans tend to do. 5️⃣ Russians tend to be more communal, more focused on interpersonal harmony ____🅰️ This allows them to see their own personal needs in larger context, from an outsider perspective. 6️⃣ Americans come from a tradition of rugged individualism, and tend to focus on the personal. ____🅰️ With less of a community perspective, they immerse themselves in the emotional details of negative events, and this self focus leads to distress and depression. 🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺 Sources: 1️⃣ Herbert, Wray. ‘To suffer is to suffer’: Analyzing the Russian national character. (June 30, 2010). Association for Psychological Science. https://www.psychologicalscience.org/.../to-suffer-is-to... 2️⃣ Oleg Yegorov. February 22 2019. Why do Russians benefit from suffering? https://www.rbth.com/lifestyle/330011-russian-suffering 3️⃣ Jonah Lehrer. 2010. Why Russians Don't Get Depressed. https://www.wired.com/.../why-russians-dont-get-depressed/ 🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺🇷🇺 [I am writing the section on the "Russian Soul" and I came across this brilliant psychology/sociology article about the differences between Americans and Russians: https://whydontrussianssmile.com/ ]