The discourse world of unbecoming in online depression narratives in China: a discursive psychology approach

Abstract The emergence and proliferation of online depression communities (ODCs) on social media have illuminated the emotional landscape of individuals experiencing depression and the linguistic characteristics intrinsic to depression narratives. Despite the substantial growth of these communities, scant research has been conducted on unmanaged ODCs. These communities often construct narratives of unbecoming that recount experiences that have been missed, lost, rejected, or undone, thereby offering a window into the nuanced complexities of depression narratives. Drawing upon the discursive psychology approach, this study selectively investigates 2,000 comments of 20 core participants in ‘Zoufan’ Weibo, a representative ODC in China, to discern how the participants communicate discursive positioning via linguistic cues. Adopting the four-world approach, I code four types of positioning cues, map them onto three discourse worlds, and report the most salient linguistic resources observed within each world. I further argue that the commenters construct a realm (the fourth world) characterized by an emotional estrangement from the self and the environment. The findings offer insights into depression narratives in Chinese ODCs and highlight the value of the discursive psychology method in emotion studies.