Abnormal Time and Space Experiences Among Transitional-Age Youth With a Major Depressive Disorder: A Phenomenological Qualitative Study.
Journal of advanced nursing November 7, 2025 Yingying Qin, Ying Zhou, Wenjing Wang et al.
Transitional-age youth with major depressive disorder experience pervasive abnormalities in how they perceive time and space. In a descriptive phenomenological qualitative study at a psychiatric hospital in China, 17 participants described five overarching themes: disturbance of time order, slackening of the flow of time, vital inhibition, desynchronisation of social rhythms, and disturbance of lived space. These disturbances shape their sense of self, personal development, relationships, and engagement with the world. Desynchronisation of social rhythms appears to be a unique and developmentally salient challenge for this group. The findings expand phenomenological understandings of major depressive disorder and highlight developmental vulnerabilities during this critical life phase.