Company Does Not Love Misery
Illustration★★★★Misery may love company, but company clearly does not love misery. At Miami University, psychologist James C. Coyne asked forty-five female college students to talk on the phone for twenty minutes with other women, some of whom were depressed—though the students weren’t told that. Later, the students indicated they had much less interest in spending time with the depressed women than with those who were not depressed. Such reactions are part of a common vicious circle. Unhappy people often drive away the very people whose support they need, thereby worsening their depression and intensifying their need for support.
The point
Research shows depressed people paradoxically drive away the support they desperately need, creating a vicious cycle of isolation and worsening depression.