Staying with a person suffering from depression for a long time is the right way to experience the same symptoms, according to the American psychologists from the University of Notre Dame in Indiana.
They conducted a study involving more than 200 students, who were living with roommates in the university campus. These were the freshmen students. According to the scientists, they are more prone to depression, since they are in a transitional stage of life. Psychologists conducted tests that determined to which degree each of the students was exposed to the emergence of depressive symptoms. Three months later, the tests were repeated.
The result showed that the students’ mood was largely dependent on the emotional temperament on their roommate. The students, whose roommates suffered from depression, were more often inclined to suffer from the same thing. There was a clearly observed inverse relationship: positive roommates ‘infected’ other students, sharing their optimistic outlook on life. Six months later, the scientists repeated the tests again and confirmed the original result. Thus, success in the treatment of depression can be achieved by changing the environment.
