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Abstract

This article is based on a qualitative investigation of contemporary female subjectivities at the intersection of two particular identities: being a “young professional woman” and “depressed.” Thirteen women working in both private and public sector roles in two major cities in Aotearoa New Zealand participated in semi-structured, in-depth interviews. Employing a practice-based approach to analysis, my aim was to explore whether participants’ accounts are inflected by what cultural scholars call the “top girl” or “can-do girl” ideal and the implications for “recovering” from depression. I identified five identity practices which constitute the subject position of the “ideal depressed self” who (a) delivers no matter what, (b) puts on a brave face (particularly at work), (c) treats her depression medically, (d) looks after herself, and (e) works toward becoming more positive. A discussion of the discursive underpinnings, in particular, neoliberal and postfeminist rhetoric, highlights the harmful effects of this individualizing perspective.

Keywords

depression professional women “top girl,” identity practice critical discursive psychology New Zealand

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Practicing the Ideal Depressed Self: Young Professional Women’s Accounts of Managing Depression

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