Published in Journal of Affective Disorders, this article by Marta Beneda, Joachim Kowalski, and Marta Witkowska examines whether the language people use can reveal subtle signs of mood and self-related difficulties. Across two preregistered studies with 587 participants, the research shows that lower mood and lower self-esteem are associated with reduced use of semantic agency — words and phrases expressing control, intention, autonomy, and goal pursuit. Importantly, semantic agency also distinguished participants above versus below the depression screening threshold, whereas grammatical indicators of agency showed weaker and less consistent associations. These findings highlight the potential of everyday language as a behavioral marker of psychological well-being, with implications for psycholinguistics, clinical psychology, digital mental health tools, and language-based approaches to screening and support.
Publication:
Beneda, M., Kowalski, J., & Witkowska, M. (2026). Words without power: Reduced agency as a linguistic signature of low mood and self-esteem. Journal of Affective Disorders, 400, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2026.121170
Open access: https://share.swps.edu.pl/entities/article/69995987-98e2-4a6b-babc-21a8b13a863d
Referenced projects:
Keywords: Depression; Linguistic agency; Depression markers; Mood; Self-esteem