Gender differences in the interpersonal response to depression and spinal cord injury

Social problem solving and depression in couples coping with cancer

“…Then, the partner eventually develops his or her own depressive symptoms, hostile feelings, ambivalent support, and withdrawal from the depressed person 10, 12. Three decades of research have supported the idea of this interpersonal systemic response to depressive symptoms in couples 13–18. Several of these studies have examined the interactional model for depression in adults with heart disease 13, 14 as well as spinal cord injury 15–18 and found support for components of the model in medically ill populations.…”

When depression breeds contempt: Reassurance seeking, self-esteem, and rejection of depressed college students by their roommates.

“…The existence of disconfirming studies underscores the possibility that the depression-rejection relation may be affected by moderator variables that interact with depression to induce rejection. 1 In this regard, Hammen and Peters (1977) found that written descriptions of depressed persons elicited more rejection than did written descriptions of nondepressed subjects, particularly if the transcript described a depressed male subject (see also Boswell & Murray, 1981;Hammen & Peters, 1978;Phillips, 1964;Yamamoto & Dinzey, 1967; but see Borden & Baum, 1987;Frank et al, 1987;Gotlib & Beatty, 1985;Stephens, Hokanson, & Welker, 1987;Winer, Bonner, Blaney, & Murray, 1981, for studies in which gender effects were not found).…”

Interpersonal Reactions to Depression and Physical Disablllty In Dyadic Interactions1

“…Over time, these reactions may inadvertently reinforce the problematic depressive behavior. Accumulating research indicates that persons with physical disability who display depressive behaviors are also rejected and devalued, and are held accountable for their behavior Frank et al, 1986). The current study indicates that negative verbal, nonverbal, and cognitive reactions are detectable in short-term interactions.…”

“…These characterizations may not reflect the presentation of depressive symptomatology in routine encounters. Additionally, the use of male actors precludes conclusive extrapolations to women with disability, although analogue research has not detected any meaningful differences in the reactions to depressed men and women with disability (Frank et al, 1987). The contrived interactions limit generalizability of the findings to ongoing interactions.…”

“…Recent evidence accumulated from experimental research implies that the interpersonal behavior of a person with disability may moderate "kindness norm" reactions. Persons with disability who behave in a stereotypically depressed manner are rejected and perceived to possess many negative personal attributes by students (Corcoran, Frank, & Elliott, 1988;Frank et al, 1987;Elliott, Frank, Corcoran, Beardon, & Byrd, 1990), rehabilitation staff (Frank et al, 1986), nurses, and peers (Elliott, Yoder, & Umlauf, 1990). Subjects endorse more stereotypic beliefs about people with disability after exposure to a depressed person with disability while others viewing a nondepressed person with disability report significantly more open, accepting attitudes toward those with disability .…”