Depression Flashcards
what are the two types of depression that the DSM-5 recognises?
MDD: major depressive disorder it is severe but short term
PDD: persistent depressive disorder is not as sever as MDD but is long term
what are the criteria (of which 5 must be met) to diagnose someone as depressed?
- Depressed mood or irritable most of the day, most days
- less interest or pleasure in most activities, most of
each day - Significant weight change (5%) or change in appetite
- Change in sleep: Insomnia or hypersomnia
- Change in activity: Psychomotor agitation or retardation
- Fatigue or loss of energy
- Feelings of worthlessness or excessive or inappropriate guilt
- Can’t concentrate
- Suicidality
what are the emotional characteristics of depression?
frustration, sadness, worthlessness
what are the behavioural characteristics of depression?
distant, self harm, sleep less
what are some cognitive characteristics of depression?
absolutist thoughts, can’t concentrate, pessimistic view
what did Aaron Beck believe about depression?
Faulty thinking and negative schemes will lead to people developing a negative triad of thoughts. this in turn causes people to have negative views on themselves, the future and the world.
what is cognitive bias?
Beck found that people with depression would often see things in a negative way straight away.
what are 2 examples of cognitive biases Beck made?
over-generalisations and catastrophising
what is over-generalisation?
if you fail one test and thing you will fail every test you do in the future
what is catastrophising?
if you fail a test and thing you will never be able to go to uni and get a good job
when do schemas develop?
during childhood and adolescence
what can cause someone to develop a negative schema?
unrealistic expectation set by parents by which no matter how hard the child works it is never enough
what’s an example of a negative triad?
self: I am a failure
future: I will never succeed
word: the world is against me
what would a healthy perspective be after a break up?
self: its not my fault it was never going to work
future: ill find someone else
world: these things happen
What would be a negative self, future and world perspective be after a breakupp
self: I was never good enough for her
future: no one will ever love me again
world: people never give me a chance
what did Beck et al (1974) find?
when someone walked passed by a depressed person and did not smile it made them feel inferior. those with depression felt inferior in intelligence, looks compared to other social groups.
what was Albert Ellis’s ABC model?
the believe of there being action, believe and consequence
how did the ABC model show depression?
someone without depression:
Action - left on delivered
belief - they are busy
consequence - they get on with other things
someone with depression
Action - left on delivered
belief - they hate me
consequence - feels worthless all day
what are issues with the cognitive approach to explaining depression?
Blames the patient rather than situational factors
Consequence rather than cause
The idea of schemata is rather vague and it is not clear about how irrational thoughts should be defined and measured.
Comparison with alternative explanations
It could be that irrational thoughts are entirely rational
what were the two early forms of CBT?
cognitive therapy and REBT
what was the aim of cognitive therapy?
to identify and challenge the negative automatic thoughts that they believe to be true about themselves and their world
what was the aim of CBT?
to allow people to be able to recognise when they were making these negative interpretations and so they would be able to understand their problem better as well as negative behavioural patterns which reinforce the distorted thinking
what was the ideal result of cognitive therapy?
for people to see alternate ways of thinking and behaving which would reduce their issues in daily life
what is the duration CBT?
about 20 sessions over 16 weeks which focuses on the here and now rather than the past
what are the four phases of CBT?
initial assessment
goal setting
identifying/challenging irrational thoughts
homework
how did ellis believe therapy should be?
harsh and to expose irrational thoughts for what they are
what did Ellis believe be common irrational thoughts?
The idea that one should be thoroughly competent at everything.
The idea that is it catastrophic when things are not the way you want
them to be.
The idea that people have no control over their happiness.
The idea that you need someone stronger than yourself to be
dependent on.
The idea that your past history greatly influences your present life.
what was the ABCDE model?
action
belief
consequence
dispute/challenge irrational thoughts
effective thoughts replace irrational ones
what was the aim of the ABCDE model?
to replace irrational negative thoughts with more rational and positive ones. it was also to get rid of ideas like I need to be amazing at everything or else I am worthless.
what did March et al (2007) prove about CBT?
antidepressants had equal effectiveness to CBT (both at 81%) but provided better results when combined (86%)
pros of CBT
Allows opportunity to use strategies in range of situations
No real side effects or withdrawal symptoms
Deals with root cause not just symptoms
Role of the person as engaged and active rather than passive
The better trained the therapist, the
better the therapeutic outcomes
Appropriate to use with depression as many symptoms are faulty cognitions
Gives the person some control over disorder & the power to change
cons of CBT
Have to be committed and motivated to change
Does not focus on why negative beliefs held – may actually be based on realistic concerns
Expensive & time consuming
People do still relapse
Become dependent on therapist
CBT can be unsuitable for patients with difficulty concentrating (often a problem for
depressives)
