Affective Disorders and Cognitive Failures: A Comparison of Seasonal and Nonseasonal Depression

Abstract

Seasonal depression shares certain common symptoms with nonseasonal depression; however, the two disorders have never been examined in a single study, to the authors' knowledge. The goal of this research was to examine the potential similarities in cognitive impairments in seasonal affective disorder and major depressive disorder in college students in the Midwest. Identification of affective disorders was based on participants' self-reported behavior and affect on the Beck Depression Inventory and the Seasonal Pattern Assessment Questionnaire. A group of 93 participants was assessed for major depressive disorder and seasonal affective disorder in late autumn and completed the Cognitive Failures Questionnaire for reported difficulties in everyday activities that correspond to problems with perception, attention, and memory retrieval. The results indicated that seasonal affective disorder was highly prevalent (28.0%), substantially more so than major depressive disorder (8.6%). Similar to previous research on major depressive disorder, gender differences were also evident among participants with seasonal affective disorder, with more women qualifying than men. Both affective disorders were associated with higher reports of cognitive failures in comparison to participants with no depressive symptoms. These results reveal that individuals with seasonal affective disorder showed cognitive impairments similar to those with nonseasonal depression.

Assessing Preservice Teachers’ Mathematics Cognitive Failures as Related to Mathematics Anxiety and Performance in Undergraduate Calculus

“…Early studies on cognitive failures and anxiety showed that there existed a significant positive relationship between cognitive failures and anxiety (Broadbent et al, 1982). Studies also showed a meaningful relationship between cognitive failures, anxiety, psychological tension and affection disorders (Sullivan & Payne, 2007). CFQ scores had been found to be positively correlated with state anxiety symptoms even after controlling for the influence of trait anxiety and neuroticism (Merckelbach, Muris, Nijman, & de Jong, 1996), although there had been a significant association between CFQ scores and trait anxiety (Smith, Chappelow, & Belyavin, 1995).…”

Sharpening our Understanding of the Consequences of Insomnia: The Relationship Between Insomnia and Everyday Cognitive Failures

“…Insomnia was found to be a significant predictor of each of these factors: memory (b = 0.29, t(894) = 9.28, p \ .001, b = 0.29), distractibility (b = 0.33, t(903) = -8.92, p \ .001, b = 0.29), blunders (b = 0.26, t(896) = 9.14, p \ .001, b = 0.29), and (memory for) names (b = 0.05, t(917) = 4.35, p \ .001, b = 0.14). It has previously been reported that cognitive functioning has a significant relationship with depression (Merckelbach et al 1996;Sullivan and Payne 2007), stress (Mahoney et al 1998), and anxiety (Houston 1989;Matthews and Wells 1998). Therefore, we next conducted a multiple regression model in which the CFQ was predicted by the ISI, along with the QIDS, PSS, PANAS, and STAI.…”

“…Merckelbach et al (1996) found cognitive failures to be related to depression in a sample of Dutch students. Similarly, Sullivan and Payne (2007) found cognitive failures were significantly greater in a sample of college students with seasonal affective disorder and major depressive disorder than non-depressed college students. Mahoney et al (1998) found stress and anxiety were strongly associated with self-reported and observed cognitive failures in individuals aged 16-29.…”

The Validity and Reliability of Cognitive Failures Questionnaire in University Students

“…Sullivan and Payne (2007) stated that the relationship between cognitive failures, anxiety, and psychological tension (29). When anxiety is increased, perception and attention are worse affected (7,30).…”