Depression emerges when entrepreneurial self-belief meets blocked opportunity

Evidence

Depression is the shadow side of entrepreneurial culture, what happens when magical voluntarism confronts limited opportunities. As psychologist Oliver James put it in his book The Selfish Capitalist, “in the entrepreneurial fantasy society”, we are taught “that only the affluent are winners and that access to the top is open to anyone willing to work hard enough, regardless of their familial, ethnic or social background — if you do not succeed, there is only one person to blame.” It’s high time that the blame was placed elsewhere. We need to reverse the privatisation of stress and recognise that mental health is a political issue. — Mark Fisher (edited by Darren Ambrose), K-Punk, 1605

Categorization

• XREF: ‘Depression’s felt realism mirrors capitalist realism’s lowered expectations’ (ch.92) — this gives the mechanism behind that pairing. — connects to: Unlimited self-optimization becomes a new coercion producing depression and burnout; Self-efficacy beliefs determine persistence and vulnerability to stress and depression — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement: How People Do Harm…, 78; Narrowed entrepreneurial paths made self-delusion necessary for aspiring billionaires — W. David Marx, Blank Space: A Cultural History of the…, 572 (+2 more)

Broader Connections

• Self-efficacy beliefs determine persistence and vulnerability to stress and depression #expands (0.88) — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 78
• Narrowed entrepreneurial paths made self-delusion necessary for aspiring billionaires #exemplifies (0.80) — W. David Marx, Blank Space, 572
• Unrealistic self-worth standards drive widespread depression in America #qualifies (0.78) — Sheldon Solomon, Jeff Greenberg, Tom Pyszczynski, The Worm at the Core, 243