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Depression is a way of living - a sick way. Long tradition and predominant contemporary thought support the view that a form of depression designated as “neurotic” is an entity. According to a new trend of thought, however, as understanding of the dynamics of depressive illness increases, delineating a separate “neurotic depression” appears more difficult and perhaps less meaningful. It is in the framework of this evolving view that this is written. The classification, often used interchangeably with “reactive depression,” is employed chiefly for differentiation from psychotic depression.
The American Psychiatric Association's standard nomenclature (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, 1952) lists it as depression reaction “… synonymous with ‘reactive depression’”; it comes under Psychoneurotic Disorders (“Disorders of Psychogenic Origin or without clearly defined tangible cause …”†).
A great deal of confusion exists over the classification of the broad generality of depression. Beck (1961), after undertaking an intensive systematic investigation of depression, was forced to