Depression seems to be becoming one of the most important and threatening disorders. In presenting the explanatory approaches, the book focuses on newer psychoanalytic concepts and the treatment strategies derived from them. Case vignettes illustrate individual concepts, and conditions such as burnout and depression in older adults are discussed. In treatment, psychopharmaceuticals are sometimes indispensable, which is why the implications of combining analytical therapy with psychopharmaceuticals are explored. As empirical foundations of the etiology, psychodynamics, and therapy of depression will play a prominent role in the 21st century, selected new research findings are presented.