Cognitive explanations of depression

• Cognitive psychologists assume that thinking can be compared to information processing in a computer. Abnormal behaviour will follow when the processing box is faulty.
• What did Beck say about depression?


  Depressed individuals often focus on negative aspects of themselves - links to having a negative self schema. May stem from negative experiences in early life (e.g. bullying or having critical parents)
• What did Beck say depressed individuals are prone to?

  • Overgeneralisation (Had a bad date so what's the point of dating?)
  • Catastrophising (Making small mistake at work & believing you'll be fired)
  • Personalisation (Negative events are interpreted as their fault)
  • Labelling (Instead of thinking 'I made a mistake', refer to themselves as a loser or a failure)
• What is Beck's negative triad?

  • Negative view of the self (I am incompetent and undeserving)
  • Negative view of the world (It is a hostile place)
  • Negative view of the future (problems will not disappear/there will always be emotional pain)
• What did Ellis propose about depression?

  It is affected by irrational thoughts which stop us from being happy. He proposed the ABC model:

  A - Activating event (negative external event)

  B - Beliefs (Can be rational or irrational)

  C - Consequences (the emotional and behavioural response)
• What does arbitrary inference mean?


  When a conclusion is drawn, despite there being an absence of sufficient evidence (or any evidence at all). e.g. you have an argument with an acquaintance and think "everyone hates me".
• What does selective abstraction mean?


  When a conclusion is drawn on the basis of ONE of many possible elements of a situation. e.g. "My friend didn't answer the doorbell, she must be avoiding me".
• What does overgeneralisation mean?


  An overall conclusion, which is drawn on the basis of a single (even trivial) event, yet it is applied to involve many situations. e.g. You give a bad lesson and think "all of my students will think I'm incompetent".
• What does magnification mean?


  A cognitive bias that involves 'over-playing' potential negative events - taking a relatively minor incident and blowing it out of proportion. e.g. "If I fail my exams, my life is ruined".
• What does minimisation mean?


  This is under-playing the importance of positive events and playing down positive feedback. e.g. A woman believes that she is worthless, despite praiseworthy achievements. "They've only given me positive feedback because they pity me".
• What does personalisation mean?


  The 'world revolving around me' syndrome. This involves attributing random negative events to yourself despite evidence to the contrary. e.g. Believing that it's all your fault that no one is enjoying themselves at a party at which you are only a guest.
• What does absolutist dichotomous thinking mean?


  'Black and white' thinking, or 'all or nothing' thoughts. There is no room to see alternatives. E.g. A person tells you they'd really like to see you again but that they're busy for a few days. You interpret their unavailability as a signal that they don't really like you.
• What are should & must statements?


  Beliefs about what the person should and shouldn't do and generally reflect the schema that the person has. This is sometimes referred to as 'musterbation'. e.g. "I must be best at everything" or "I must be liked by everyone".
• Issue = we don't know origin of irrational thinking. Doesn't explain why individuals think in negative and unhelpful ways and why it happens to some and not others. Explanation is incomplete. Still unknown whether irrational & negative thinking is a consequence of depression or whether is itself is a cause of the depression.
• Strength = lends itself to an effective treatment. For example, Beck & Ellis have both developed therapies aimed at changing the irrational beliefs of depressed individuals. Has been found to be successful at reducing depression symptoms meaning that cognitive explanation has led to a way to improve the quality of individuals lives.
• Issue = doesn't explain the effectiveness of drug treatments. E.g. recent anti-depressant medication has been found to be vey effective at reducing symptoms of depression. Suggests there is some effect of biology as a cause of depression. Means cognitive explanation can't be only reason an individual becomes depressed.
• Issue = May appear to blame the depressed person. Suggests it is down to themselves and the way they think. Ignores any contribution of environmental factors. May not be helpful to individuals already struggling with negative thinking about themselves. However, could be strength as individual has power to change themselves and tackle their thinking which they couldn't if depression was down to purely biological factors.