DEPRESSION AND SUICIDE FROM A PHENOMENOLOGICAL-EXISTENTIAL AND PERSON-CENTERED PERSPECTIVE: An integrative review

Abstract

This study aims to conduct an integrative and qualitative review of scientific productions on depression and suicide according to Existential Phenomenology and Person-Centered Approach. Data collection was carried out in the Scielo, Pepsic, ResearchGate, and CAPES Periodicals databases. 13 articles that correlate the descriptors used and meet the inclusion and exclusion criteria were selected. The results show that, from the existential phenomenological perspective, depression and suicide are seen as multifaceted phenomena that take into account subjectivity, the search for meaning, and human authenticity. The authors discuss that what leads a person to suicide is existential anguish caused by factors such as a technicist society, the incessant search for happiness, social stigma, individualism, fragile relationships, dysfunctional families, and the prioritization of medicalization over care. The most cited authors supporting the studies found are Heidegger, Sartre, and Carl Rogers, who bring both similarities and differences. Studies relating depression and suicide to the Person-Centered Approach assert that these phenomena occur due to a distortion of the self, causing anguish and existential pain, as the idealized self-image and the real lived experience are distinct. It is encouraged to produce more articles that bring a humanistic perspective on depression and suicide in life stages beyond adolescence, such as old age and childhood. Additionally, it encourages the production of more studies focusing on the Person-Centered Approach, as well as empirical studies with case analyses.