Attentional biases in depression: Relation to disorder severity, rumination, and anhedonia

Abstract

Introduction: According to cognitive models of depression, selective attentional biases (ABs) for mood-congruent information are core vulnerability factors of depression maintenance. However, findings concerning the presence of these biases in depression are mixed. This study aims to clarify the presence of these ABs among individuals with clinical and subclinical depression. Method: We compared three groups based on a semi-structured diagnostic interview and a depressive symptoms scale (BDI-II): 34 individuals with major depressive disorder (clinically depressed); 35 with a dysphoric mood but without the criteria of major depressive disorder (i.e., subclinically depressed), and 26 never been depressed individuals. We examined AB for sad and happy materials in three modified versions of the exogenous cueing task using scenes, facial expressions, and words. Brooding, anhedonia, and anxiety were also evaluated. Results: In contrast to our hypotheses, there were no ABs for negative or positive information, regardless of the task and the groups. Neither the association between AB toward negative information and brooding nor the one between AB away from positive stimuli and anhedonia was significant. Bayes factors analyses revealed that the present pattern of findings does not result from a lack of statistical power.Discussion: Our results raise questions about how common AB is in depression. From a theoretical point of view, because individuals with depression did not exhibit AB, our results also seemingly challenge the claim that AB figures prominently in the maintenance of depression. We believe the present null results to be particularly useful for future meta-research in the field.

A review of attentional bias modification trainings for depression

“…As we mentioned above, the characteristics of participants were an important factor affecting the effect of ABMT. Although negative attentional bias was one of the causes of depression, not all symptoms of depressed individuals were dominated by negative attentional bias 76 . So the levels of attentional bias prior to the ABMT in different participants might obscure the training effect.…”

“…Although negative attentional bias was one of the causes of depression, not all symptoms of depressed individuals were dominated by negative attentional bias. 76 So the levels of attentional bias prior to the ABMT in different participants might obscure the training effect. Training effects might only be expected when participants showed a negative attentional bias before the ABMT.…”

COVID-19 Pandemisinde Üniversite Öğrencilerinin Depresyon Düzeylerinin Sosyal Medya Bağımlılığı Üzerindeki Rolünün İncelenmesi: Bir Yapısal Eşitlik Modeli

“…Yaşanan bu değişikliklerle birlikte salgın ile ortaya çıkan belirsizlik, korku, kafa karışıklığı, panik gibi duyguların bireylerde anksiyete, depresyon ve uyku bozukluklarına neden olduğu (2) belirtilmektedir. Krings ve arkadaşları göre evde kalmak zorunda olan bireylerde hastalıktan kaynaklanan korku, geleceğe dair belirsizlik, finansal güvensizlik, stres ve endişe düzeyi artacaktır (3). Ağır Akut Solunum Yolu Yetersizliği Sendromu (SARS) gibi önceki pandemilerde bireylerin stres, anksiyete ve depresyon düzeylerinde yüksek oranda artış olduğu (4) rapor edilmektedir.…”

“…Virüsün yayılmasını kontrol altına almak amacıyla zorunlu karantinaların ve sosyal mesafe kurallarının yaşandığı bu dönemlerde günün tamamını evde geçiren bireyler sınırlı fiziksel aktivitelere sahiptir. Dolayısıyla bireyler sosyalleşme ihtiyacını gidermek, hastalık hakkında bilgiye erişmek ve artan zamanını harcamak amacıyla interneti ve sosyal medya ağlarını yoğun olarak kullanmaktadırlar (2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16)(17). Yapılan araştırmalar (13,14) sosyal medya ağlarının yoğun olarak kullanımı bazı sorunları beraberinde getirdiğini göstermektedir.…”