According to an article in the American Journal of Psychiatry, Cain may have had depression years after he slew Abel.
“Poor sibling relationships in childhood may be an important and specific predictor of major depression in adulthood.”
This is the conclusion reached by the study, Childhood Sibling Relationships as a Predictor of Major Depression in Adulthood: A 30 Year Prospective. The research goes to explain,
“How might we understand the finding that sibling relationships were more important predictors than relationships with parents? For most adults, the capacity to relate well with peers is central to both occupational and social functioning. Sibling relationships may help children develop specific capacities to mobilize interpersonal resources, and these capacities may promote emotional well-being in adulthood.”
If Cain did have mental illness, this paled in comparison to some other problems which were of Biblical proportions.
