The Role of Positive Schemas in Child Psychopathology and Resilience

Abstract

Research on child psychopathology focuses almost exclusively on the role of negative schémas as a vulnerability factor, while there has been a neglect of research on the role ofpositive schémas in child psychopathology (MacLeod & Moore, 2000). While decades of research have established negative cognitive schémas as a potent vulnerability factor for various negative developmental outcomes (e.g., Abela & Hankin, 2008), cognitive models of child psychopathology have yet to fully integrate positive schémas as a potential vulnerability factor. The little research conducted on positive schémas to date, suggests they bear more attention in this regard (e.g.,

Cognitive schemas as longitudinal predictors of self-reported adolescent depressive symptoms and resilience

“…Gencoz and colleagues (2001) found that a lack of positive schema content in a sample of 9 to 17 year-olds was a specific cognitive feature of depression, rather than other internalizing disorders (i.e., anxiety). Most recently, in a sample of 170 adolescents aged 9 to 14, positive schema content was negatively related to depression and importantly, explained more variance in youth depressive symptoms than negative schema content (Keyfitz et al, 2012). In particular, these results suggest that the absence of positive schemas may be a particularly important predictor of depressive symptoms among youth (Keyfitz et al, 2012).…”

“…Similar to previous studies (e.g., Keyfitz et al, 2012), this study conceptualized resilience as self-reported capacity to cope or effectively manage self-appraised life difficulties (e.g., health problems) or stressful life events (e.g., death of a family member) adaptively. It is important to note that resilience is considered an ordinary developmental process that stems from normative human resources rather than unusual or extraordinary qualities (Masten, 2001).…”

“…Thus, in the current study resilience is defined as ones internal resources (e.g., personal strengths, feelings, attitudes) to cope with adversity. Although resilience and positive schemas are related constructs, research to date suggests they are distinct (Keyfitz et al, 2012). Even after controlling for resilience when examining positive schemas as a predictor of depression, positive schemas were found to predict unique variance in depression (Keyfitz et al, 2012).…”

“…Within this literature, cognitive schemas with themes of loss, defectiveness, and dependence have been identified as important vulnerability factors in the etiology of depression (Beck, 1967;1987;Dozois & Beck, 2008). More recently, positive cognitive schemas (i.e., positive core beliefs about self, e.g., self-efficacy, worthiness) have also been identified as important protective factors for promoting resilience in a sample of early adolescents (Keyfitz et al, 2012). The current study employed a cognitive-developmental framework to examine the stability of cognitive schemas in youth, and whether either positive or negative cognitive schemas could prospectively predict depressive symptoms and resilience in an adolescent sample.…”

“…Researchers have begun to integrate resilience constructs into cognitive developmental theories of risk for depression (Hjemdal, Aune, Reinfjell, Stiles, & Friborg, 2007;Hjemdal, Vogel, Solem, Hagen, & Stiles, 2011;Keyfitz et al, 2012;Mak, Ng, & Wong, 2011) to better understand and prevent psychopathology (Masten, 2001;2011). In studies of nearly 400 younger adolescents (aged 13 to 15; Hjemdal et al, 2007), and 300 older adolescents (aged 14 to 18; Hjemdal et al, 2011), higher levels of resilience were associated with lower levels of depressive symptoms.…”