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Winston Churchill’s ‘Black Dog’: a psychobiographical case study for depressive realism

Text in English / This qualitative psychobiographical study sets out to explore and describe the life of Sir Winston Churchill within the context of his lifelong experience with depression, his ‘Black Dog’. The aim of the research is to present a case for depressive realism with Churchill as the single case study. The reconstruction of Churchill’s life as a psychological narrative is contextualised within the theoretical framework of Alfred Adler’s Theory of Individual Psychology.
Data was collated via biographical and life history material. Data was analysed by means of thematic analysis. Data trustworthiness and ethical considerations were adhered to.
The findings of this study reveal that Churchill’s depression had positive gains of him striving to contribute to society, potentially demonstrating that depressive realism exists as a side-effect of depression. The significance of which, conceivably substantiates the idea that positive aspects of depression do exist, enabling a potentially more encouraging and constructive outlook for individuals suffering from depression. / Psychology / M.A. (Psychology)

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:unisa/oai:umkn-dsp01.int.unisa.ac.za:10500/18837
Date01 1900
CreatorsHuman, Samantha
ContributorsLaidlaw, Christine
Source SetsSouth African National ETD Portal
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeDissertation
Format1 online resource (xix, 343 pages) : illustrations, photographs

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