This is correlation, not causation, mind you; it could be that those subjects who started out feeling worse imagined that everyone else was getting along just f

This is correlation, not causation, mind you; it could be that those subjects who started out feeling worse imagined that everyone else was getting along just fine, not the other way around. Well, at least the article mentioned that no causality has been demonstrated, which is much more than most articles of this nature do. But the notion that feeling alone in your day-to-day suffering might increase that suffering certainly makes intuitive sense. Well, it might make intuitive sense, but that doesn't mean its correct. One of the symptoms of clinical depression is a distorted view of the feelings of others. In other words, clinically depressed people think that other people are having more fun because they're depressed, not the other way around. A similar phenomenon might be operating here.