The role of cognition in depression: A critical appraisal
Abstract
Examines 5 broad areas of cognitive functioning: expectations and evaluations of performance, perception of environmental information, recall of information, cognitive biases, and attributional processes. A review of the literature suggests that neither A. T. Beck's (1967, 1976) nor the learned helplessness model of depression has a strong empirical base. Depressed persons present themselves negatively on a variety of measures, but less consistently than either model suggests. Differences between depressed and nondepressed persons with respect to extralaboratory experiences and self-presentational strategies remain viable alternative explanations for those results that have been obtained. In addition, specificity to depression has not been demonstrated consistently for any measure of cognitive bias or distortion. Attention is given to conceptual and methodological difficulties in unambiguously establishing what people think, in demonstrating biased or distorted cognitive processes, and in testing hypotheses about the fundamental role of cognition in depression. (4½ p ref)