This week, after reading Chapter 7 of our text, the topic of co-rumination jumped out at me, which is a consequence of friendship that usually exists between female children and adolescent girls. The whole concept of co-rumination is that these girls will constantly discuss their problems over and over again with each other, but never really solve the issues that are involved. The text pointed out that while it's beneficial to have support from friends, if too much time is spent talking about problems, it can actually have negative effects, which can lead to depression and anxiety. This was interesting to me because they were referring to female children and adolescent girls, but it made me wonder why there was no mention of female adults. In my opinion, I think it does occur in female adults and more studies should be conducted to see if this is the case.
The reason why I wonder if this continues into adulthood is because it brings to mind one of my former employees. This woman "ruminated" about her problems, pretty much 24/7. She was the type of person that had to find "drama" in her life at all times, and now that I have learned about this concept of co-rumination and how it can lead to depression and anxiety, I'm convinced that it really does, due to the fact that she told me that she was on anti-depressant and anti-anxiety prescription medication, in addition, she also had substance abuse problems with alcohol.
I did some further research on this topic, and according to an article from the American Psychological Association web page, it said that a lot of friends were sympathetic for awhile, but after awhile became "frustrated, mad, and tended to pull away" from another friend, (like my employee), which in turn, gives the ruminator something else to ruminate about! I also found another bit of information in my research that piqued my curiosity, and that was, there appears to be a "gender link" involved, boys also co-ruminate, but they do so with female friends and not male friends. Interesting!! I would like to learn more about the male/female aspect of this subject and if the effects of co-rumination are the same or different than the female/female relationship.
I thought the whole co-rumination concept was a neat one also. I know A LOT of women who do this type of thing on a daily basis and I can only imagine that speaking about unresolved issues continuously would create some issues in their lives. It seems really unhealthy to speak of problems over and over and never really do anything about it.
ReplyDeleteThe part of your blog about males only co-ruminating with female friends is very intersting. I wonder why that is? Maybe because women may be a little more accepting of this type of bahavior?
Great blog!
Thanks for your feedback! I also think it's unhealthy to constantly focus and talk about your problems! Life is so much better when you have a positive outlook! I have a gratitude journal and I find at least 3 things that I"m thankful for everyday and write them down, even if it's just something like I'm grateful for "running water", or things that we just take for granted. I think it would be great if teachers (or parents) would get children in the habit of doing this everyday - can you imagine what it would be like if everyone was going around appreciating things instead of complaining about everything?!
DeleteI wonder what the co-ruminating children (and your former coworker) are really trying to do.
ReplyDeleteOne possibility is that they are working on their problem-solving, but getting locked in to one step. There are many basic problem-solving methodologies - here's one copy-pasted at random from the internet: [[ Identify the Problem > Define the Problem > Form a Strategy > Organize Information > Allocate Resources > Monitor Progress > Evaluate the Results ]]. So let's say someone gets locked in to "defining the problem" over and over again, especially with the reinforcement of a willing accomplice. They are early enough in their development that "forming a strategy" is outside their skill set. Of course, this applies more to early childhood - by adolescence most people can manage planning.
Another possibility is that it has nothing to do with solving a problem. This may be an empathy exercise. Back from chapter 5: "by 18 months of age, toddlers try to comfort others who are hurt or upset." So this is a behavior that develops long before concrete problem-solving does.