Depression Flashcards
What are the behavioural characteristics of depression?
1) Change in activity levels - increased activity/ agitation or lack of energy and withdrawal from activities once enjoyed
2) Disruption to sleep - Increased sleep (hypersonic) or decreased sleep (insomnia)
3) Disruption to eating behaviour - Increased appetite leading to weight gains or decreased appetite leading to weight loss
What are the cognitive characteristics of depression?
1) Black and white thinking - viewing an unfortunate situation as an absolute disaster
2) Negative schema - Viewing every situation as negative and ignoring the positives
3) Poor levels of concentration - Being unable to make straightforward decisions or stick to a task like usual interfering with work
What are the emotional characteristics of depression?
1) Lowered mood - feeling numb, empty, sad and worthless
2) Experience anger directed at themselves and others
What are the two features of the cognitive explanation for depression?
1) Beck’s negative triad
2) Ellis’ ABC model
AO1: Intro for cognitive explanation
The cognitive approach explains how depression is caused by the way people think about situations. It states that is our thoughts are irrational and mainly negative it makes the person more vulnerable to depression.
AO1: Beck’s negative triad
Beck suggested a cognitive approach to explaining depression. He suggested that consistent negative thing can make a person more vulnerable to depression which is caused by faulty information processing where a person ignore all positive aspects of a situation and only focuses on the negative known as black and white thinking. Beck proposed the negative triad which suggests theres three kinds of negative thinking that makes someone vulnerable to depression. Negative views about the world e.g. ‘The world is a hard place’, negative views about oneself, ‘I hate myself and I am worthless’, and negative views about the future ‘I will never achieve anything’.
AO1: Ellis’ ABC model
Ellis suggested the ABC model as a cognitive explanation for depression. He suggested that irrational thoughts interfere with us being happy and free of pain. There is an activating event which is an external event such as the loss of a job which triggers irrational beliefs. Ellis identified a range of beliefs such as the belief we must achieve perfection (musterbation) and the belief the world should be fair (utopianism). When activating effects trigger irrational beliefs it leads to emotional and behavioural consequences such as depression.
What are the evaluations for the cognitive approach to explaining depression? (3)
1) RTS Cohen et al - cognitive vulnerability
2) Practical applications
3) Cause and effect
AO3: Explaining - RTS Cohen
Research to support Beck’s negative triad as a cognitive explanation for OCD comes from Cohen et al. He tracked the development of 473 adolescents and regularly measured cognitive vulnerability. He found showing cognitive vulnerability led to depression in later life. This shows an association between depression and cognitive vulnerability such as negative thinking. Therefore Beck’s negative triad is an appropriate explanation for depression.
AO3: Practical applications
A strength of the cognitive explanation for depression is that it has practical applications. The principles of the theory that depression is caused by negative and irrational thought processes has led to the treatment of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. CBT is effective in treating depression as patients identify and challenge irrational/negative thoughts and change them into rational/positive ones by disputing. Therefore the cognitive approach to explaining depression is an important part of applied psychology as it helps to treat people in the real world.
AO3: Explaining - Cause and effect
A weakness of the cognitive approach to explaining depression is that cause and affect can’t be established. Whilst negative/irrational thoughts and linked to depression it can’t be firmly concluded whether they cause depression or a consequence of it. Therefore it’s argued the cognitive approach to explaining depression can’t be seen as the full explanation.
AO1: CBT as a treatment for depression
