Coping ability, negative self-evaluation, and overgeneralization: Experiment and theory.

Compared responses of 3 groups of Ss differing in general coping ability, as measured by the Constructive Thinking Inventory, on matched sets of items that differed according to whether the outcomes were positive or negative and directed at the self or at others. All groups reported widespread overgeneralization to items with favorable outcomes. Groups differed strongly and consistently only in response to unfavorable outcomes directed at the self, with poor constructive thinkers reporting more negative overgeneralization than others following such outcomes. It was concluded that poor constructive thinkers have a selective bias toward making negative inferences about the self, which has widespread implications for their general coping ability. A theoretical framework is presented for understanding why individuals acquire and maintain negative self-schemata, which has implications for depression and self-esteem as well as for general coping ability. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Depression, social comparison, and the false-consensus effect.

Refers to the fact that in general, people perceive high consensus for their own attributes—the "false-consensus effect." 20 depressed and 20 nondepressed undergraduates (10 men and 10 women in each group) were asked about the extent to which depression-relevant and depression-irrelevant attributes were true of themselves and true of the "average college student." Ss were also asked questions assessing the accuracy of their perceptions of others. Depressed Ss showed less false consensus than nondepressed Ss. Although depressives characterized themselves as dissimilar to others, they showed no consistent bias to deprecate themselves relative to others. Nondepressives consistently enhanced themselves relative to others, although the magnitude of their self–other differences was smaller than that of depressives. The tendency to deprecate oneself relative to others on negative depression-relevant items was a better predictor of severity of depression than self-perceptions or other perceptions alone. Findings regarding the accuracy of perceptions of others were mixed. The discussion includes implications for the false-consensus effect, depressive attributional style, nondepressive self-serving biases, and therapy for depression. (1? p ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The nature of negative thoughts in depression.

Investigated the nature and content of the negative thoughts that accompany depression by examining thoughts about oneself and others during 3 cognitive tasks: imaging, recall, and inference. 45 female undergraduates were classified as mildly depressed or nondepressed on the basis of scores on the Beck Depression Inventory. Ss then were asked to image, recall, and make inferences about a variety of events while thinking about themselves or another person. The events were sad or happy and either social or nonsocial in nature. Results suggest that the negativity in thought that accompanies depression was restricted to thoughts about the self and did not extend to thoughts about others. The relation between negative thoughts and the depressive's view of self is discussed. It is proposed that depressives have a negative self-schema that makes the affective nature of their behavior particularly salient. (29 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Specificity of reference patterns in depressive thinking: Agency and object roles in self-representation.

This study investigated A. T. Beck's (1970) negative cognitive triad as a model of depressive thinking. A mixed clinical sample (N?=?126) completed the Sentence Completion Test for Depression (SCD) and self-report measures of depression and anxiety. Two reference patterns were tested: agency roles, people who are the source of thoughts, feelings, and actions (self and others); and object roles, points of reference location (self, other, world, future, and past). Cognitive effects were highly specific to depression. With self in agent role, significant correlations were observed with negative self, world, and future references but not with other people or the past. With others in agent role, only negative self references were correlated with depression (e.g., "Some people would not ... put me out if I was on fire"), suggesting an interpersonal extension to the negative cognitive triad. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-discrepancies and emotional vulnerability: How magnitude, accessibility, and type of discrepancy influence affect.

Two studies with 129 undergraduates examined whether the type of emotional change experienced by individuals is influenced by the magnitude and accessibility of the different types of self-discrepancies they possess. In both studies, Ss filled out a measure of self-discrepancy a few weeks prior to the experimental session. Ss were asked to list up to 10 attributes each for their actual self, their ideal self (their own or others' hopes and goals for them), and their ought self (their own or others' beliefs about their duty and obligations). In Study 1, Ss asked to imagine a positive or negative event who had a predominant actual–ideal discrepancy felt more dejected on a mood measure and wrote more slowly on a writing-speed task in the negative event condition than in the positive event condition. Ss with a predominant actual–ought discrepancy felt more agitated and wrote more quickly in the negative event condition. In Study 2, Ss high or low in both kinds of discrepancies were either asked to discuss their own and their parents' hopes and goals for them (ideal priming) or asked to discuss their own and their parents' beliefs concerning their duty and obligations (ought priming). For high-discrepancy Ss, ideal priming increased their dejection, whereas ought priming increased their agitation. (59 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Response biases and the relation between negative life events and psychological symptoms.

Investigated whether reporting biases can account for the correlation between negative life events and subclinical psychological symptoms. 73 undergraduates each brought a close friend to the experiment. Ss completed the Beck Depression Inventory, the Brief Symptom Inventory, the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale, and a college student life events schedule. Friends were asked to report about life events experienced by the Ss. Findings did not support an S reporting bias associated with social desirability, depression, or symptoms. For one of the life events scales, depression was significantly associated with a higher rate of agreement between Ss and friends as to which negative events occurred to Ss. There were significant correlations between symptom and depression measures and life events measures that were free of S-reporting biases (Ss' negative life events reported by both Ss and their significant others, as well as Ss' negative life events as reported by significant others alone). Data suggest that response biases may not be able to account for the relation between negative events and psychological symptoms. It is contended, however, that the hypothesis that negative life events play a significant role in symptom development remains plausible. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychosocial adjustment of adolescent children of a depressed, arthritic, or normal parent.

Examined the joint effects of having a parent with a psychological or physical disability and stressful life events on the mental health of 3 groups of adolescents: 16 adolescent children of a depressed parent, 16 adolescent children of a parent with rheumatoid arthritis, and 16 adolescent children of parents free from psychological or physical disability. Ss were asked to complete a battery of assessments, including the SCL-90, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Family Environment Scale, and scales assessing life events and satisfaction with school. It was found that, in contrast to the normal group, Ss with arthritic parents reported lower self-esteem, whereas Ss with depressed parents reported lower self-esteem and more symptomatology. However, the 2 risk groups did not differ in terms of mental health or family and school adjustment. Both negative and positive life events were strongly related to poorer adjustment, but only for Ss with depressed and arthritic parents. There was a significant interaction effect of parental disability (depressed vs normal) and negative life events on symptomatology, with the Ss with depressed parents who experienced few negative life events reporting symptom levels equivalent to that of the normal group. Within-group analyses revealed that a positive familial social climate was related to better adjustment among all 3 groups: satisfactory school involvements were related to better adjustment among the depressed-parent and normal groups. (39 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Manipulation of self-esteem as a determinant of mood of elated and depressed women.

Tested the theory that self-esteem is a determinant of elation-depression. Changes in self-esteem were induced by having Ss read positive or negative self-evaluative statements. 140 female college students were selected on the basis of extreme scores of characteristic elation and depression and on the basis of suggestibility and were assigned to 1 of 5 treatment or control groups. The induction of positive vs negative cognitions produced significant differences in elation-depression on multiple measures. Characteristically elated and depressed Ss were able to take on opposite mood states. This study suggests that a determinant of depression is evaluative self-statements, supports the utility of cognitive therapy for depressives, and demonstrates a potentially useful technique for inducing more appropriate self-evaluations. (19 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effect of depression level and length of acquaintance on reaction of others to a request for help.

Examined an interpersonal-process view of depression by assessing 60 undergraduates' reactions to a request for help from a hypothetical depressed or nondepressed person with whom they had been acquainted for a relatively short (2 wks) or long (1 yr) period of time. Ss responded to each of the 4 hypothetical persons by indicating their probable affective reactions to the request, the number of minutes they would be willing to help, their desire for future social contact with the hypothetical person, and their expectations of future requests for help. Results indicate that Ss felt significantly more concern and were willing to provide significantly more time for long-term acquaintances. Requests from depressed persons elicited significantly more anger and social rejection but equal amounts of concern and willingness to help. This mixed response pattern was interpreted as providing partial support for an interpersonal-process view of depression. A path analysis provided limited support for J. C. Coyne's (see record 1979-01146-001) hypothesis that rejection of depressed persons results from the negative mood they induce in others. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Focus of attention mediates the impact of negative affect on altruism.

An experiment with 36 undergraduates tested whether the relationship between negative affect and altruism is mediated by focus of attention. Ss were asked to imagine that a close friend was terminally ill. They were told to attend either to their own reactions or to the reactions of the dying friend. Ss in these conditions did not differ in self-reported negative mood. Moreover, they were "sadder" than Ss in a control condition, who imagined a nontragic event. When subsequently given the opportunity to be anonymous altruists, the other-focused Ss were significantly more helpful than either the self-focused or control Ss. It is suggested that negative moods facilitate altruism among people who are attending to the problems of others, but not among people who attend to their own needs, concerns, and losses. The ethical implications of experiments inducing powerful negative affects are discussed. (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Selective recall of positive and negative feedback, self-control behaviors, and depression.

Tested 2 sets of hypotheses, derived from cognitive–behavioral theories of depression, that (a) compared to a sample of nondepressed controls, depressed Ss would underestimate the frequency of reinforcement and overestimate the frequency of punishment received during an ambiguous laboratory task; and (b) when given the opportunity to self-reinforce or self-punish, depressed Ss would self-reinforce less often and self-punish more often than controls. Three of these predictions were supported. In an experiment with 24 depressed and 21 nondepressed undergraduates (Beck Depression Inventory), depressed Ss recalled less positive and more negative feedback than controls. As expected, these differences were significant only at a high rate of reinforcement and at a low rate of punishment. In the latter condition, however, depressed Ss were accurate in their recall, while nondepressed Ss underestimated the frequency of negative feedback. Depressed Ss self-reinforced less often than controls, but there were no differences in rates of self-punishment. Implications for cognitive and behavioral theories of depression are discussed. (22 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Experimenter approval, social desirability, and statements of self-reference.

Using 40 undergraduate Ss high or low on a social desirability scale, a verbal conditioning attempt was made to alter the relative frequency of self-referent statements that were either positive or negative. Before reinforcement, high and low social desirability Ss responded very similarly, and used more positive than negative self-references. High social desirability Ss responded to reinforcement by increasing equally the frequency of both positive and negative self-referent statements. Low social desirability Ss did not condition, but continued to make more positive than negative self-references. Although high and low social desirability Ss both have the need to impress others favorably, the high social desirability person is apparently more dependent on the overt, evaluative behavior of others, and for this reason he can be manipulated more easily than low social desirability Ss. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-consciousness, self-attention, and social interaction.

Conducted 2 experiments with a total of 128 female undergraduates to test the effects of self-focused attention on positive and negative social interactions. In Study 1 the behavior of dispositionally high and low publicly self-conscious women (as measured by the Self-Consciousness Scale) was examined in an interpersonal situation involving rejection by a group. It was hypothesized that persons high in self-consciousness, being more aware of how they are perceived by others, would be more sensitive and react more negatively to the rejection than those low in self-consciousness. The predictions were confirmed. In Study 2, female Ss were presented with favorable or unfavorable feedback in the context of an interview, and self-attention was experimentally manipulated by exposing half the Ss to their images in a mirror. Self-awareness increases the negative response to the negative evaluation and tended to increase the positivity of the positive evaluation. The implications of self-awareness theory for the social self and social interaction are discussed. (38 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Life events and personal causation: Some relationships with satisfaction and distress.

Hypothesized that Ss who engaged in more positive origin activities would rate their lives as more satisfying than Ss who engaged in fewer such activities, and both would be more satisfied than control Ss. After completing a series of questionnaires including a life-event inventory, 3 groups of college students were selected from a pool of 141 and given instructions either to (a) engage in 12 activities from a self-selected list of pleasurable activities, (b) engage in 2 activities from that list, or (c) return after 1 mo for retesting only. Ss were then given a pleasantness-of-events test, an event-frequency test, the Perceived Quality of Life Scale, the Beck Depression Inventory, and a 54-item Symptom Check List. Covariance analyses revealed that Ss instructed to engage in either 2 or 12 pleasurable activities reported greater pleasantness and a higher quality of life than controls; there were no differences between groups on reports of psychiatric distress. Prior negative life change was treated as a factor in the design and was found to interact with the activity instructions: Ss reporting many prior negative changes exhibited less psychiatric distress along with greater pleasantness when instructed to engage in 12 activities rather than 2 or none. Results suggest that pleasant activities increase positive aspects of well-being in general, but may reduce distress only for people experiencing considerable life stress. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Caregiver models of self and others, coping, and depression: Predictors of depression in children with chronic pain.

In a sample of 59 chronically ill pediatric patients and their maternal caregivers, both child-reported pain and caregiver-reported depression predicted child-reported depression. Results further suggested that the association between pain and depression in children is ameliorated by caregiver coping strategies and that how caregivers cope is a function of their attachment-related representations of the self and others. Caregivers with a negative model of the self were more depressed, and those with a negative model of others were more prone to use avoidant coping strategies, and, in turn, to be more depressed. However, the extent to which caregivers with negative models of self used more avoidant and less approach coping appeared to depend on whether they perceived that others were likely to respond to their needs. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality change during the transition to parenthood: The role of perceived infant temperament.

Examined the effects of 70 parents' (mean age 28.69 yrs) perceptions of infant temperament on their own personality during the transition to parenthood. Two assessments were made about 16 wks apart for 22 primiparous couples (mean time prebirth 6.5 wks and mean time postpartum 10.5 wks) and for 13 childless couples. Ss were administered both global/trait and situation-specific/state measures, including the Eight-State Questionnaire and the Perception of Baby Temperament Instrument, in order to assess efficacy expectations, personal control, anxiety, and depression. New parents rated their infant's temperament along 4 dimensions: activity, rhythmicity, adaptability, and positive mood. The parent group showed greater change than the nonparent group on a number of measures. New parents who perceived their infant as having an easier temperament experienced more positive change, whereas new parents who perceived their infant as more difficult experienced more negative change, especially in personal control. Differential results were found for the 4 temperament dimensions, with adaptability and positive mood most frequently related to personality changes. The findings also indicate that fathers showed personality change in relation to their infant's temperament more often than mothers. (35 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self–other judgments and perceived vulnerability to victimization.

Previous studies have shown that people who have not been victimized by negative life events tend to perceive themselves as less vulnerable than others to victimization. The present 2 studies examined the conditions under which Ss' judgments of others' vulnerability would differ from judgments of their own vulnerability. In Study 1, 101 undergraduates saw vague comparison targets (either the average person or the average college student) as more vulnerable than themselves to 10 negative events. In contrast, Ss perceived a specific target (their closest friend, sibling, or same-sex parent) as equally invulnerable as themselves. In Study 2, 190 Ss who were instructed to consider a vague, abstract target (either the average college student or one of their friends) made downward comparisons, choosing a real or hypothetical other who was especially vulnerable to a particular event. Ss who were instructed to consider a specific, concrete target (their closest friend) perceived no self–other differences in risk status. It is concluded that when given the opportunity, Ss actively engage in downward comparisons, thereby seeing themselves as relatively invulnerable. Whereas vague targets facilitate downward comparisons, specific targets make such comparisons more difficult. Both cognitive and motivational mechanisms underlying such downward comparisons are discussed. (29 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relational aspects of temporary changes in construing self and others.

Examined the effects of role-playing contrasting positive and negative moods on the way in which people construe themselves and others. 38 17–33 yr old undergraduates completed a baseline repertory grid in which they categorized themselves and acquaintances on bipolar constructs (e.g., excitable–calm). As in previous studies, Ss assigned others to the "unlike-self" poles of constructs approximately 37% of the time, and to the positive poles about 63% of the time. They twice repeated this grid while role-playing positive and negative moods. In the negative-mood grid, they characterized both themselves and others more negatively, and construed others as less similar to themselves. In the positive-mood grid, they evaluated themselves and others more positively, and described others as more similar to themselves. (French abstract) (30 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Role of health locus of control beliefs and expectations of treatment efficacy in adjustment to cancer.

Examined the effects of health locus of control beliefs (self-, doctor, and chance control) and expectations of treatment efficacy on short-term psychological adjustment in 137 18–86 yr old newly diagnosed cancer patients. The role of these beliefs and expectations in moderating the relation between perceived and actual disease severity and depression was also examined. Ss completed an intake questionnaire assessing the perceived severity of illness, the amount of pain or discomfort they were experiencing, how sad or depressed they were, and expectations about complying with medication instructions; Ss also completed items from Rotter's Internal–External Locus of Control Scale, the Multi-Dimensional Health Locus of Control Scale, and the Self-Rating Depression Scale. The relation between perceptions of disease severity and depression was weaker for Ss who believed that they could personally control their health and for those who held positive expectations about the effects of complying with medical treatment. Similar patterns were found when disease severity was defined in terms of prognosis for survival. Strong negative correlations between self-control/treatment expectations and depression were found for Ss who perceived that their illness was severe. The results for chance and doctor control were less consistent. The stability of health control beliefs and treatment expectations over the course of a serious long-term illness is discussed. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)