Effects of attributions for success on the alleviation of learned helplessness and depression.

Investigated the effects of attributions for success on the alleviation of mood and performance deficits of 104 19–60 yr old clinically depressed inpatients. Ss were assigned to either an acutely depressed group or an improved depressed group that was exposed to a learned helplessness induction procedure. Ss received 80% positive feedback on a task allegedly measuring social intelligence. Concurrently, Ss were exposed to experimental manipulations designed to induce attributions of this experience to 1 of 4 types of causes (internal–general, internal–specific, external–general, external–specific). Following this task, Ss' mood, expectancies, and anagram performance were assessed. Results indicate that helpless and depressed Ss who received the internal attribution manipulations reported less depressed mood than Ss in the external attribution conditions. Similarly, Ss in the general attribution conditions performed better and reported higher expectancies for success on the anagrams than Ss in the specific attribution conditions. Results are supportive of an attribution theory model of learned helplessness and depression. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Dimensions of perfectionism, daily stress, and depression: A test of the specific vulnerability hypothesis.

Tested whether perfectionism dimensions interact with specific stressors to predict depression. A depressed patient sample (N?=?51) and a general psychiatric sample (N?=?94) completed measures of perfectionism, hassles, and depression. Ss in Sample 2 also completed other personality measures to assess the amount of unique variance in depression. Partial support was obtained: In both samples, self-oriented perfectionism interacted only with achievement stressors to predict depression. Socially prescribed perfectionism interacted with interpersonal stress in Sample 1 and with achievement stress in Sample 2 to predict depression. Several personality variables, including socially prescribed perfectionism, accounted for unique variance in depression. The results suggest that perfectionism dimensions are associated with depression and may constitute specific vulnerability factors. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Age and sex effects for emotional intensity.

Examined age and sex trends in emotional intensity in 432 Ss from adopting and nonadopting biological families. It was hypothesized that younger adults and females would report greater average levels of both positive and negative affect over time, as has been demonstrated in past research. 242 Ss (parents and offspring) completed a battery of mood scales. 190 Ss completed an affect intensity measure and a general behavior inventory. In support of the hypothesis, women scored higher on measures reflecting emotional intensity and manifestation of cyclothymic symptoms, and the scores on these measures decreased through the adult life span for both males and females. Potential reasons for the differences in emotional intensity are discussed. These include biological causes, cultural expectations, and current life experiences. (35 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hassles and health: A replication.

Explored the relationship between minor daily events and somatic health. 397 Ss (aged 20–64 yrs) completed a survey on life experiences, hassles, and uplifting events and a health status questionnaire. Significant but low correlations were found between life experience scores and somatic symptoms and energy level. Hassles scores were significant predictors of overall health status when the effects due to life experiences were controlled. Contrary to findings by A. de Longis et al (see record 1983-05622-001), hierarchical multiple regression analysis indicated that life experiences, hassles, and uplifts accounted for only a small proportion of the variance reflected in health outcome measures. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Depression-related cognitions: Antecedent or consequence?

Measured depression-related cognitions and self-esteem in 998 adults who were followed for 1 yr. Ss completed a battery of tests including the Subjective Probability Questionnaire, Personal Beliefs Inventory, and Multidimensional Multiattributional Causality Scale. 63 Ss were depressed at the time of assessment, 85 became depressed during the follow-up period, and 115 had a history of depression but were not depressed at the initial assessment. Results are generally consistent with the hypothesis that depression-related cognitions arise concomitantly with an episode of depression. The currently depressed Ss differed from nondepressed Ss as expected; however, Ss who were to become depressed during the course of the study did not differ from controls on the cognitive measures. In addition, depressive cognitions did not seem to be permanent residuals of an episode. Although the depression-related cognitions did not predict future depression, they did predict improvement; depressed Ss with more negative cognitions were significantly less likely to improve during the follow-up period. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Classifying college students as depressed or nondepressed using the Beck Depression Inventory: An empirical analysis.

In Study 1, the classification of 150 college students as nondepressed or mildly or moderately depressed was compared using Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) scores obtained on 2 occasions, either on the same day or 1 wk later. Whereas the overall test–retest reliability coefficients were acceptable, particularly when both administrations occurred on the same day, the consistency of classification of Ss into the mild and moderate levels of depression was poor. In an attempt to determine the factors contributing to the poor classification consistency, a 2nd study with 207 Ss compared the effect of exposure to the BDI on subsequent BDI responses. Ss who completed the BDI on 2 occasions showed significantly lower BDI scores compared to Ss exposed to an alternate depression inventory (the Self-Rating Depression Scale [SRDS]) or no prior questionnaire. In addition, a large percentage of Ss classified as moderately depressed following the initial BDI administration failed to be classified within the moderate categories on retesting the same day. Ss tested using the SRDS maintained the same depression classification when retested on the BDI. Item analyses failed to reveal significantly different amounts of change among individual BDI items. (39 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Depression and components of attributional complexity.

Tested the hypothesis that depression is associated with increased attributional complexity. In Study 1, 208 Ss completed the Beck Depression Inventory and the Attributional Complexity Scale. Analyses provided support for the hypothesis. Examination of individual components of attributional complexity revealed that depressed Ss, relative to nondepressed Ss, were higher in level of motivation to engage in attributional processing, the tendency to make complex external attributions, and the use of temporal information. In Study 2, 132 Ss completed the Beck Depression Inventory and made simple or complex causal attributions for naturally occurring positive and negative outcomes. As in Study 1, the depressed Ss made a greater number of complex attributions. The roles of complexity and motivational factors in the attribution process and in depression are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The role of cognition in predicting activities of daily living and ambulation functioning in the oldest old rehabilitation patients.

Examined what demographic, medical, cognitive, and affective measures predicted activities of daily living (ADL) and ambulation for 60 geriatric rehabilitation inpatients (aged 85 yrs or older) at discharge. Ss completed the Geriatric Depression Scale, Dementia Rating Scale (DRS), and Functional Independence Measure. Cognition, as measured by the DRS, was the only significant predictor of both ADL and ambulation scores. Gender was correlated with ADL skills, indicating that women attained higher ADL scores, while men did better on ambulation skills. DRS scores accounted for 8% of ADL variance and 16% of ambulation variance, above and beyond demographic and medical variables. Depression was a poor predictor of functional skills among this sample, few of whom were depressed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attributional style and depression in rheumatoid arthritis: The moderating role of perceived illness control.

Examined the moderating influence of perceived daily illness control on the relationship between disease-unrelated causal attributions and Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-IV (DSM-IV) depressive symptomatology in a sample of 58 patients (aged 25–75 yrs) with rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Eight of the Ss met DSM-IV criteria for major depression. All Ss completed paper-and-pencil instruments measuring depression, attributional style, arthritis-specific helplessness, disease severity and pain and disability. As predicted, attribution?×? perceived control interactions contributed significant variance to depression, after controlling for disease variables and arthritis helplessness. Specifically, internal and global attributions for negative events were associated with increased levels of depression under conditions of decreased perceived illness control. The findings provide support for examining general attributional style in studies of depression in RA and for cognitive diathesis-stress conceptualizations of adjustment to chronic illness. Clinical implications of the results for cognitive-behavioral treatment approaches in RA are also discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Interpersonal and impersonal problem-solving skills in mildly and clinically depressed university students.

Administered the Beck Depression Inventory and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory to 20 nondepressed and 20 depressed university students and 8 nondepressed and 10 depressed university students being treated at a university counseling service. Ss were then tested on the Means–Ends Problem-Solving Procedure (a measure of interpersonal problem-solving ability) and the anagram task used in the investigations of learned helplessness (a measure of impersonal problem-solving ability). All Ss were administered the Clarke Institute of Psychiatry version of the Vocabulary subscale of the WAIS. A significant negative correlation was found between depression and interpersonal problem-solving ability, while only anxiety was correlated with anagram performance. Differences between groups were found only in interpersonal problem-solving performance. Nondepressed Ss performed significantly better than the other 3 groups, while depressed counselees obtained the lowest scores on the interpersonal measures. No relationship was found between performance on the anagram task and performance on the Means–Ends Problem-Solving Procedure. Results are consistent with predictions generated by interpersonal theories of depression, but they raise questions about the validity of the learned helplessness model as an analog of clinical depression. (46 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Assessing the structure of prejudicial attitudes: The case of attitudes toward homosexuals.

Two studies assessed the structure of attitudes toward homosexuals. In Study 1, Ss completed measures of stereotypes, symbolic beliefs, and affective associates as well as attitudes toward homosexuals. They also completed the right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) scale. The results reveal that (1) stereotypes did not provide a complete representation of attitudes, (2) RWA was negatively correlated with attitudes toward homosexuals, (3) the relative importance of the predictor variables differed for high and low RWA Ss, and (4) the 3 predictors accounted for more variance in the attitudes of low RWA than of high RWA Ss. Study 2 also included measures of past experiences and perceived value dissimilarity. Results revealed that past experiences significantly added to the prediction of attitudes only for high RWA Ss and that much of the RWA–attitude relation was accounted for by the consideration of symbolic beliefs and perceived value dissimilarity. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Depression and subjective well-being among 97 American Indians with spinal cord injury: A descriptive study.

ABSTRACT. Objective: To measure both clinical and nonclinical aspects of depression and subjective well-being (SWB) among a sample of American Indians with spinal cord injury (SCI) and to identify factors associated with depression and SWB. Study Design: Interviews were conducted by telephone with all participants except those who did not have telephones (who returned materials by mail). Setting: A large rehabilitation hospital in the western-Rocky Mountain region of the United States. Participants: Ninety-seven American Indians with SCI completed a health-related interview that included measures of depression and SWB. All participants were adults with traumatic SCI of at least 1 year in duration, most of whom lived on reservations. Main Outcome Measures: Measures of biographic and injury status, depression, SWB, activities, and health-related behaviors. Results: The American Indian sample reported elevated levels of depression and diminished SWB in 5 of 8 areas relative to previous studies on non-American Indians with SCI. Hierarchical multiple regression accounted for 59% of the variance in depression scores and between 10% and 52% of the variance in SWB scales… (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Depression in college students: Personality and experiential factors.

In this study we examined the nature of college-student depression and its relation to personality variables and to experiences unique to college life. Thirty-five depressed and 39 nondepressed students completed a depression inventory, a series of personality scales, and a survey developed to investigate the impact of potentially distressing components of college life. Results revealed that college-student depression, though mild in intensity, represents a serious problem: Three quarters of depressed students had been depressed for more than 3 months, and half had contemplated suicide. Both personality characteristics and experiential variables were found to be significantly related to depression, together accounting for approximately half the variance. We examined individual personality traits and experiential variables that were found to differ between depressed and nondepressed subjects, and we discuss the implications of the findings for counseling and for future research. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attachment style and emotion regulation in dementia patients and their relation to caregiver burden

One hundred and sixty-eight patients with mid- to late-stage dementia and their caregivers participated in a study of the relation between patient emotional characteristics, dementia symptomatology, and caregiver burden. Measures included premorbid attachment style, premorbid emotion regulation style, and behavioral symptoms of dementia. The attachment patterns (secure, avoidant, ambivalent) of these elderly patients resembled those obtained in samples of younger individuals in terms of emotion regulation characteristics; however, the distribution of attachment styles was significantly different, with a lower proportion of ambivalently attached individuals in the present sample. In terms of the behavioral symptoms of dementia, ambivalent patients had more depression and anxiety than secure and avoidant patients; the latter patients experienced more activity disturbance than ambivalently attached individuals and were higher on paranoid symptomatology than securely attached persons. Caregivers of securely attached individuals experienced less total burden than did caregivers of both insecure groups. In regression analysis, attachment style accounted for the largest proportion of unique variance in the prediction of caregiver burden (8%); only 1 of 7 patient symptoms contributed a significant independent effect, namely depressed affect, which accounted for 4% of the variance.     

Differentiation between depression and anxiety: A new scale.

Describes the development of the Paired Anxiety and Depression Scale which measures the relative balance between depression and anxiety but does not yield a quantitative measure of either. Results from undergraduates show that the amount of variance accounted for by the new scale was much greater than the Profile of Mood States and that all differences between Ss instructed to respond as "very depressed" or "very anxious" were significant. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Depressive attributional style.

143 undergraduates completed an attributional style scale designed by the authors, the short form of the Beck Depression Inventory, and the Multiple Affect Adjective Check List. Results show that depressed Ss, compared to nondepressed Ss, attributed bad outcomes to internal, stable, and global causes, as measured by the attributional style scale. This attributional style was predicted by the reformulated helplessness model of depression. In addition, relative to nondepressed Ss, depressed Ss attributed good outcomes to external, unstable causes. (8 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Negative and positive cognition in depressed and nondepressed chronic-pain patients.

Examined negative and positive automatic thoughts and attributional style in 60 men (aged 21–64 yrs) who were depressed chronic-low-back-pain (CLBP) patients, nondepressed CLBP patients, or healthy controls. Ss completed measures that included the Attribution Style Questionnaire and the Automatic Thoughts Questionnaire (S. D. Hollon and P. C. Kendall; see record 1981-20180-001). Depressed Ss exhibited significantly more negative automatic thoughts than nondepressed Ss and controls. Nondepressed Ss reported significantly more positive automatic thoughts than did depressed Ss and controls. No significant differences were found for attributional style. Different cognitive-behavioral interventions might be considered for depressed and nondepressed CLBP Ss. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Nonassertiveness, dysfunctional attitudes, and mild levels of depression.

Studied the relationships between nonassertion, dysfunctional attitudes, and mild levels of depression, using 89 undergraduates who completed 2 self-report measures of assertion, the Beck Depression Inventory and the Dysfunctional Attitudes Scale (DAS). In accord with past research, it was found that assertion deficits increased significantly with increases in depression scores. The presence of dysfunctional attitudes also accounted for a significant increase in assertion difficulties, over and above that accounted for by depression. In particular, Ss scoring high on the DAS indicated greater difficulty in the resolution of interpersonal conflicts and the comfortable assertion of their own rights, compared to Ss scoring low on this measure. Findings are discussed in terms of the disruptive effects of dysfunctional attitudes on assertive responding and their possible relationship to a cognitive vulnerability model of depression. (French abstract) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Causal attribution of emotion in kindergarten children.

A measure of causal attribution of emotion using a simple, realistic task with responses requested in segments was employed to investigate kindergartners' understanding of the causes of emotions in others. Results challenge previous research suggesting that preoperational children cannot demonstrate an understanding of causality. Significant, positive correlations between causal attribution scores and teacher ratings of role-taking ability for girls suggested a relationship between causal attribution of emotion and social role-taking skills. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)