Disorders - Explanations Flashcards
What was the aim of Lewinsohn’s study on explanations of depression?
To compare the amount of positive reinforcement received by depressed and non-depressed patients.
What was the sample in Lewinsohn’s study on explanations of disorders?
30 in total - 10 participants who were diagnosed with depression, 10 who had a disorder other than depression (psychiatric controls) and 10 who did not have a disorder at all (control group).
What was the procedure of Lewinsohn’s study on explanations of disorders?
Participants asked to check mood daily using the depression adjective checklist and complete the pleasant activities scale, rating 320 activities twice on a scale of three - once for pleasantness and once for frequency. This is how Lewinsohn operationalised positive reinforcement.
What are the results from Lewinsohn’s study on explanations of disorders?
Significant positive correlations between mood ratings and pleasant activities. Individual differences from 0 to -0.66, showing there is more to depression than reinforcement from pleasant activities.
What did Lewinsohn’s study on explanations of disorders conclude?
There appears to be a link between reinforcement from pleasant activities and mood, but more research is needed to identify the individual characteristics that make some people more influenced by pleasant activities than others.
What are three strengths of Lewinsohn’s study on explanations of disorders?
+ High internal reliability – self report measures were standardised.
+ High ecological validity – real patients with real depression/other psychiatric disorders.
+ Increased internal validity/usefulness due to use of control group.
What are three weaknesses of Lewinsohn’s study on explanations of disorders?
- Lower internal validity – Self reports mean that social desirability bias and demand characteristics will influence responses.
- Low external reliability – only 30 PPS mean that individual differences will have a larger influence on the results.
- Low internal validity due to lack of control over extraneous variables, despite being reductionist. This reduces usefulness.
