Wealth, power or lack thereof at heart of many mental disorders
Donald Trump's ego may be the size of his financial empire, but that doesn't mean he's the picture of mental health.
The same can be said about the self-esteem of people who are living from paycheck to paycheck, or unemployed. New research from the University of California, Berkeley, underscores this mind-wallet connection.
UC Berkeley researchers have linked inflated or deflated
feelings of self-worth to such afflictions as bipolar disorder, narcissistic
personality disorder, anxiety and depression, providing yet more evidence that
the widening gulf between rich and poor can be bad for your health.
"We found that it is important to consider the motivation to pursue power, beliefs about how much power one has attained, pro-social and aggressive strategies for attaining power, and emotions related to attaining power," said Sheri Johnson, a UC Berkeley psychologist and senior author of the study published in the journal Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice.
In a study of more than 600 young men and women conducted at UC
Berkeley, researchers concluded that one's perceived social status -- or lack
thereof -- is at the heart of a wide range of mental illnesses. The findings
make a strong case for assessing such traits as "ruthless ambition,"
"discomfort with leadership" and "hubristic pride" to
understand psychopathologies.
"People prone to depression or anxiety reported feeling
little sense of pride in their accomplishments and little sense of power,"
Johnson said. "In contrast, people at risk for mania tended to report high
levels of pride and an emphasis on the pursuit of power despite interpersonal
costs."
Specifically, Johnson and fellow researchers Eliot Tang-Smith of
the University of Miami and Stephen Chen of Wellesley College looked at how
study participants fit into the "dominance behavioral system," a
construct in which humans and other mammals assess their place in the social
hierarchy and respond accordingly to promote cooperation and avoid conflict and
aggression.
The concept is rooted in the evolutionary principle that dominant mammals gain easier access to resources for the sake of reproductive success and the survival of the species.
The concept is rooted in the evolutionary principle that dominant mammals gain easier access to resources for the sake of reproductive success and the survival of the species.
Studies have long established that feelings of powerlessness and
helplessness weaken the immune system, making one more vulnerable to physical
and mental ailments. Conversely, an inflated sense of power is among the
behaviors associated with bipolar disorder and narcissistic personality
disorder, which can be both personally and socially corrosive.
Recent studies have found that people living in developed
countries with the highest levels of income inequality were three times more
likely to develop depression or anxiety disorders than their more egalitarian
counterparts. Similar results were found in a state-by-state comparison of
income and mental illness in the United States.
For this latest study, 612 young men and women rated their
social status, propensity toward manic, depressive or anxious symptoms, drive
to achieve power, comfort with leadership and degree of pride, among other
measures.
In one study, they were gauged for two distinct kinds of pride:
"authentic pride," which is based on specific achievements and is
related to positive social behaviors and healthy self-esteem; and
"hubristic pride," which is defined as being overconfident, and is
correlated with aggression, hostility and poor interpersonal skills.
And in a test for tendencies toward hypomania, a manic mood
disorder, participants ranked how strongly they agreed or disagreed with such
statements as "I often have moods where I feel so energetic and optimistic
that I feel I could outperform almost anyone at anything," or "I
would rather be an ordinary success in life than a spectacular failure."
Overall, the results showed a strong correlation between the
highs and lows of perceived power and mood disorders.
"This is the first study to assess the dominance behavioral
system across psychopathologies," Johnson said. "The findings present
more evidence that it is important to consider dominance in understanding
vulnerability to psychological symptoms."
Story Source:
The above story is based on materials provided
by University of California - Berkeley.
The original article was written by Yasmin Anwar. Note: Materials may
be edited for content and length.
Cite This Page:
University of California - Berkeley. "Wealth, power or lack
thereof at heart of many mental disorders." Science Daily, 9 December 2014.
<www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/12/141209082351.htm>.