The 6 primary emotions are evolved feelings to sustain life. What survival advantage does sadness confer..?

Question

It is a feeling of powerlessness and in the extreme as the mood disprder depression can kill the individual that feels it.

I don't think anyone has really got the answer yet. One has to empathise with or experience suicidal depression to appreciate what a killer it is. Saddness is said to be an evolved (basic) emotion present from birth. You don't learn to kill yourself. How can it be that it evolved when natural selection weeds out tendencies that are detrimental to survival to reproductive age. Depression is a mood disorder; it is just extreme sadness which lasts for long periods not something different. One can be so grieved over a loss that they kill themselves; like young lovers one of whom commits suicide after a breakup (Romeo and Juliet).

Answer 1

I think that sadness helps humans survive as a species. We are sad about a loss and therefore can feel empathy for others losses.. Feeling for each other leads to understanding and group adhesion.

Answer 2

1. Sadness it's not depression. Sadness is something that you feel when you lose something or someone, and then the grief process occurs and you return to a positive state. If the process is healthy, than the expression of emotion will be short term. The benefit of sadness is recovery from loss. In many mamals it comes with a motivation to look for conforting contact, which is strongly beneficial for recovery and general health.
2. Depression is a mood. Some might describe it like a sadness that it's never ending. I believe it can have an evolutionary benefit too. Depression might save animals by slowing down their body functions in order to survive through periods. I believe that depression is spreading these days in the world because we are passive and our bodies start to "behave" like when we would pass a difficult period.
This is a presupposition.
Another presupposition that I make, based on my observation, is that depression is an internal mechanism to produce stimulation when we lack stimulation from the outside.

Answer 3

Various animals do get depressed. Had a friend who had a pet rat and it's companion died. The rat became really depressed and refused to eat and just slept all day. They ended up putting it to sleep because it was just so depressed. Elephants also grieve for their lost ones.
As with the rats and elephants, humans are also social animals and I think we actually need other people to survive. Most independant animals don't have this or have the ability to move on because they do not need social interaction to keep them well.

I also beleive human's are overpopulated and our busy, hectic lives with the pressure of fashion, peers, wars, pollution, global chaos can sometimes get to us. It is telling us there is something wrong with the way we are living. People who live amongst nature are often a lot happier than those who dont.

Answer 4

I believe depression is metal illness so I don't think it's a survival mechanism. Sadness is would be involved in pack survival mentality. That is: it's better to be part of a pack so sadness (say at the death of partner) would be the driving force to seek another companion. I gues the same would be true at the death of a child. Also remember that we haven't finished evolving (never will) and we aren't the perfect entity.

Answer 5

I don't agree that sadness makes you powerless. Depression does. I think depression evolves from anger. Sadness is a normal feeling, as is depression. Prolonged sadness and depression are not normal. It is natural to grieve for things you can no longer do, think, feel, enjoy. To become trapped in sadness and depression leads to further problems. That is my opinion.

Answer 6

Sadness and depression, if you beat it will make your spirit and mind stronger. You will be able to handle things better. If your all around stronger emotionally and have an optimistic attitude you have a better chance at survival.

Answer 7

Not if the person has good friends and people to talk to