Depression Flashcards
What is depression?
a mood disorder, characterised by low mood and low energy levels
What are the two types of depression?
unipolar and bipolar
What are the behavioural characteristics of depression?
low/high activity levels- lethargy or psychomotor agitation
eating-over/under eating and hyper/insomnia-
poor personal hygiene-May not have the energy to bathe
aggression and self harm- may have knock-on effects on inter-person
What are the cognitive characteristics of depression?
poor concentration-may find themselves unable to concentrate on a task they normally would, or find it difficult to make easy decisions
attending to/focussing on the negative- inclined to focus on the bad aspects of a situation or dwell on negative memories
absolutist thinking-most situations are not all bad or all good but those with depression may see situations this way- ‘black-and-white thinking’
what are the emotional characteristics of depression?
low mood-feeling sad
anger (directed at themselves or others)
low self-esteem-have a lowered image of themselves
What is needed for a diagnosis?
have to display at least 5 symptoms everyday for at least 2 weeks
What is Beck’s negative triad?
Sufferers of depression experience cognitive distortions. Beck said that people with depression draw irrational conclusions about themselves, their world and their future. these three distortions form Beck’s negative triad
What is a schema?
an information ‘package’ of knowledge about ourself and then world around us-they are developed during childhood
How do ppl develop a negative self-schema?
They had negative experience in childhood
What are different types of negative self-schema?
ineptness schema-sufferers expect to fail
self-blame schema-they feel responsible for any misfortunes
negative self-evaluation schema-constantly reminded then of their worthlessness
What are cognitive biases?
The fact that depressed ppl tend to focus on the negative and so their thought processes are distorted
What are some of the cognitive biases Beck lays out?
overgeneralisation-sweeping conclusion based off of one experience
catastrophising- exaggerating the negative consequences of events or a situation
selective abstraction-focussing solely on the negative aspects of a situation while ignoring positive or neutral elements
when combined what do the negative self-schemas and the cognitive biases do?
maintain the negative triad
According to Ellis what is good mental health?
rational thinking which allows people to be happy and pain free, whereas depression is the result of irrational thinking, which prevents feeling happy and pain free
What is the A B C model?
A-activating event
B-beliefs
c-consequences
What is ‘A’
An activating negative event that can trigger irrational thoughts
What is ‘B’
The interpretation of the event-either rational or irrational
What are some examples of Elis’ irrational beliefs?
musturbation- certain ideas or assumptions that a person must have certain things in order to be happy and successful
Emotional reasoning-people base they beliefs off of their feelings instead of objective facts and logic
personalising-attributing external events or situations to oneself , even when there is no basis for it
What is ‘C’
the irrational beliefs that come from the activating event can then lead to unhealthy consequences e.g depression
what is a strength of the cognitive approach to explaining depression?
P-A strength of the cognitive approach to explaining depression is that there is a wealth of supporting evidence that links cognitive vulnerability to the onset of depression, with depressives selectively attending to negative stimuli.
E-For example, Boury et al monitored students’ negative thoughts with the Beck depression inventory (BDI), finding that depressives misinterpret facts and experiences in a negative fashion and feel hopeless about the future. this supports Beck’s theory that people with depression often have biased, negative interpretations of the world.
C-This shows that there are cognitive causes for depression, thus supporting the cognitive explanation for depression.
CA- However most evidence linking negative thinking to depression is correlational and doesn’t indicate negative thoughts as a cause of depression. So it is still unclear whether there is a cause and effect relationship. Beck came to believe that it was a bi-directional relationship, where both elements influence each other. As a result, we cannot conclude from the research evidence that faulty thinking is the cause of depression.
What is a limitation of Ellis’ ABC model?
P-A limitation of Ellis’ ABC model is it only explains reactive depression and not endogenous depression.
E-While it is true that depression can be triggered by life events- activating events- this is referred to as reactive depression. However many cases of depression are not traceable to life events and it is not obvious what leads the person to become depressed at a particular time. This type of depression is sometimes called endogenous. Ellis ABC model is less useful for explaining this type of depression.
C-this means that Ellis’ explanation for depression can only explain some cases of depression and is therefore only partial explanation
what is a strength of Ellis’ ABC model?
P-A strength of Ellis’ ABC model is that it has real-world application in the psychological treatment of depression.
E-Ellis’ approach to cognitive therapy is called rational emotive behaviour therapy (REBT). The idea of REBTis that by vigorously arguing with a depressed person the therapist can alter the irrational beliefs that are making them unhappy. There is some evidence to support the idea that REBT can both change negative beliefs and relieve the symptoms of depression.
C-This means that REBT and ,by association, Ellis’ model have real-world application
