Psypath: cog. approach to explaining depression AO1 + 3 Flashcards
What do cognitive theories say is the cause of depression?
Cognitive distortions -> dysfunctional/irrational thinking
What 3 biases does faulty information processing lead to?
Overgeneralisation- extreme beliefs on basis of 1 incident + applying it to a diff/dissimilar/inappropriate situ. (e.g. depressed women had issues w/boss, thinks she is failure in all relationships).
Absolutist thinking- ‘all or nothing’/’good or bad’/’either -or’ approach to world, e.g. believing you are perfect/totally incompetent.
Catastrophising- minor setback=exaggerated + viewed as disastrous (e.g. fail in 1 test=will never succeed at school/uni + get a good job.
What is a schema?
Cognitive framework/mental reps of knowledge that help interpret the world, developed in childhood.
used to navigate a complex world- leads to oversimplification
3 examples of negative schema
ineptness sch- sufferers expect to fail.
Self-blame sch- feels responsible for misfortunes.
Negative self-evaluation sch- reminds them of worthlessness.
What is the cognitive triad?
Negative views abt world/future/oneself.
World- impression there is no hope anywhere.
Future- reduces hopefulness + enhances depression.
Oneself- enhances depressive feelings- confirm low self-esteem
Ellis’ ABC model says depression caused by?
irrational thinking
What are Activating events?
An adversity or event to which there is a reaction.
e.g. ignored by a friend at school.
What is the role of Beliefs (ABC)?
Belief or explanation abt why behaviour occurred (irrational).
e.g. rational=friend is busy, irrational=friend dislikes you.
What are Consequences in Ellis’ model?
Feelings + behaviour belief causes- the external event is ‘blamed’ for unhappiness being experienced.
e.g. will ignore friend + delete number- they don’t want to talk to me.
What is mustabatory thinking?
source of irrational beliefs- thinking certain ideas/assumptions must be true for an individual to be happy.
1- Must be approved of/accepted by ppl I find important.
2- Must do well/very well.
3- World must give me happiness or I’ll die.
Ppl w/expectations will be disappointed + risk depression.
Ppl who fail exam gets depressed because they hold an irrational belief regarding the failure (means they’re stupid).
Irrational thinking should be challenged + changed to positive beliefs
Strength Beck- faulty info processing linked to depression, predisposes ppl to depression
E- Clark & Beck’s lit review concluded these were more common in depressed people, but preceded the symptoms.
E- supported in prospective study by Cohen et al., followed 472 adolescents + confirmed cognitive vulnerability predicted later depression.
L- temporal precedence of evidence of cognitive vulnerability (CV) supports association w/ CV can lead to depressive symptoms.
Strength Beck- cog model of depression + application in screening + treatment
E- Cohen et al- ability to identify CV in high-risk ppl before depressive symptoms allowed monitoring + offered acute phase of symptom expression.
E- application of understanding CV supported the application of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), Gautum- research has consistently found CBT to be one of most effective treatments for depression- challenging irrational beliefs/thoughts.
L- ev supports application of Beck’s model for screening + early treatment intervention strategies
Strength cog. expl- neg manipulation of cognition can exacerbate symptoms
E- Boury et al- pts w/depression would misinterpret info negatively (cog. Bias) + feel hopeless abt their future (cog. triad).
E- demonstrated presence of altered cognitive processes in depression- supported by Bates et al.- gave depressed pts neg automatic thought statements to read + found their symptoms worsened.
L- support the comps of Beck’s theory + idea that neg thinking involved in depression (manipulating cognition in pos treatment + neg directions- expected symptom change occurs)
limitation cog expl- reductionist, only considers role of thinking
E- depression neg/irrational thinking i.e. mustabatory thinking, doesn’t consider other symptoms (e.g. anger).
E- assumption ignores the bio research indication that depression can be due to low lvls of serotonin, + SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) can be effective.
L- so, the cog. approach=too simplistic- doesn’t account for all depressive phenomena, + other approaches need consideration, offering a more holistic view of depression
limitation ABC- only explains reactive, not endogenous, depression
E- response to ‘activating events’, life events that can trigger depression are likely to be partly affected by our beliefs.
However, many causes of depression aren’t traceable to specific life events + the precipitating cause is not readily identifiable.
E- termed ‘endogenous depression’ and Ellis’ ABC is less effective in explaining.
L- means Ellis’ model can only explain some cases of depression, and is only a partial explanation.
Clark & Beck (1999)
lit review concluded faulty info processing is more common in depressed ppl
Cohen et al (2019)
found ability to identify CV in high-risk ppl prior to onset of depressive symptoms allowed them to be monitored.
Gautum (2020)
states research has consistently found CBT to be one of most effective treatments for depression.
Boury et al (2001)
found pts w/depression would misinterpret info negatively (cog. Bias) + feel hopeless abt their future (cog. triad).
Bates et al (1999)
gave depressed pts neg automatic thought statements to read + found their symptoms worsened
overgeneralisation
Holding extreme beliefs on basis of 1 incident + applying it to a different situ
absolutist thinking
‘All or nothing’ approach to world.
catastrophising
minor setback=exaggerated + viewed as disastrous
negative schema
oversimplified schemas
ineptness schema
sufferers expect to fail
self-blame schema
feels responsible for misfortunes
negative self-evaluation schema
reminds them of worthlessness
Beck’s cognitive triad
negative views abt world/future/oneself
ABC model
depression caused by irrational thinking
mustabatory thinking
source of irrational beliefs
