Abnormal Psychology: Cognitive Aetiologies Flashcards
Nolen-Hoeksema - Aim
To carry out a prospective study of the role of rumination on symptoms related to depression
Nolen-Hoeksema - Procedure
- Participants were randomly selected and interviewed 2 times over 1 year
- All participants were interviewed in person in their own homes
- Included a battery of tests: Beck Depression Inventory, the Hamilton Rating Scale for depression, the SCID, and the Beck Anxiety Inventory
- They were given a rumination and coping questionnaire designed by the researchers (ie. they were asked to rate how often they think, “Why do I react this way?”)
Nolen-Hoeksema - Findings and Conclusion
Findings:
- Participants who showed signs of MDD on the 1st interview had a significantly higher score on ruminative responses than those who did not show signs of MDD
- Participants who had never been depressed had significantly lower rumination scores than other participants
- Those who had been depressed but improved had lower rumination scores than those who remained chronically depressed
Conclusion:
- This supports Beck’s theory that patterns of cognition can have negative effects on mental health
Nolen-Hoeksema - Evaluation
Strengths:
- Research supports Beck’s theory that patterns of cognition can have a negative effect on mental health
Limitations:
- The study relied on self-report questionnaires as well as diagnosis through clinical interviews - potential interviewer bias and demand characteristics
- Originally there were many more participants - although there was a small attrition rate, it was those with the strongest symptoms that dropped out – which means that there may have been a bias introduced into the study
- No information was available on whether the participants living with depression were receiving treatment or how other protective factors may help them to cope with their disorder - results may have been influenced by uncontrolled confounding variables
What is Aaron Beck’s theory?
Theory supported by Joiner et al
- Beck argues that depression is rooted in “automatic thoughts” - negative self-schemas organized around themes of failure, inadequacy, loss, and worthlessness
- Personalized thoughts are triggered by stimuli that lead to emotional responses (potential vulnerabilities for the onset of depression)
Evaluate Aaron Beck’s theory
- Overall, it’s unclear whether depression is caused by negative thinking patterns or if these patterns are the result of having depression
- CBT attempts to replace negative cognitions with positive thinking patterns
What is the diathesis-stress model?
Joiner et al
The diathesis-stress model:
- When one has negative thinking patterns and then is exposed to a life stressor, there is a higher probability to develop depression
- However, negative thinking alone does not lead to depression
Joiner et al - Aim
- To determine the role of depressive and anxious thinking patterns on the development of depressive symptoms
- They hypothesized that negative thinking patterns, but not anxious cognitions, would play a role in the onset of symptoms related to depression
Joiner et al - Procedure
- Sample: American university students, all taking an abnormal psychology course
- The stressor that the researchers would observe was mid-term examinations
- The students were assessed 2 weeks before and 2 weeks after their mid-term examinations
- Natural experiment: the administration of the exams was naturally occurring in the university setting
- To assess the students, there were 3 tests that were given:
1. The Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale [DAS] - Measures thinking patterns such as vulnerability, need for approval, perfectionism, and the need to impress
- Taken only before the exams
2. The Cognitive Checklist [CCL] - Half of the questions determine automatic thoughts linked to depression; the other half is linked to anxiety
- Test was taken before and after exams
3. The Beck Depression Inventory [BDI] - A standardized assessment to measure levels of symptoms linked to depression
- Test was taken before and after exams
Joiner et al - Findings and Conclusion
Findings:
- Researchers found an increase in the scores on the BDI only in students who had higher scores on the DAS and who had failed an exam
- students who had a higher score on the DAS but did well on the exams showed no significant increase in their BDI score
- students who had lower scores on the DAS did not experience depressive reactions even if they received low grades
- when looking at the scores for the CCL, there was a correlation between having higher scores on the depressive thinking patterns questions and the increase in the BDI scores if a student failed an exam
- there was no significant correlation between the anxiety scores and an increase in BDI scores
Conclusion:
Joiner et al - Evaluation
Strengths:
- Prospective study: allows researchers to see change over time - allows researchers to control for bidirectional ambiguity
Limitations:
- Naturalistic study: limited control over extraneous variables
- Sampling bias: carried out on American undergraduates who were studying psychology - age, culture, and education of the sample may all have played a role in the results of the study
- Although there was an increase in depressive symptoms, this is not the same as a clinical diagnosis of MDD - the experiment’s results may not indicate what may happen in clinical depression
Evaluate cognitive explanations of depression
Strengths:
- Longitudinal, prospective research has been used to support the role of cognitive factors in depression
- Practical application of theories led to successful treatments that improved some lives
- Some biological support for the theory of rumination
- Theory of rumination helps to explain gender differences in the prevalence of depression to a certain extent
Limitations:
- Correlational research means that causation cannot be established and bidirectional ambiguity cannot be resolved
- Treatment etiology fallacy - mistaken notion that the success of treatment reveals cause
