An Initial Study of Symptom Accommodation in Adults with Depression

Abstract

While symptom accommodation has been examined within obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and anxiety disorders, this concept has yet to be studied as it applies to depression. This study provided an initial examination of the nature, incidence, clinical correlates, and predictors of symptom accommodation among adults with depression, and validated a self-report measure of symptom accommodation related to depression, the Symptom Accommodation Scale–Depression–Patient Version (SAS-D-PV). Sixty-nine adults who were diagnosed with a mood disorder upon entry to a residential treatment program completed the SAS-D-PV along with measures of depression severity, anxiety, and anger outbursts. An exploratory factor analysis yielded a six-item scale with two factors (frequency and impact), with good internal consistency for the total score, Frequency subscale, and Impact subscale (α = .81, .87, and .85, respectively). Participants reported accommodation behaviors taking place on average two to three times over the past week. Symptom accommodation was associated with greater depression severity, anxiety sensitivity, social anxiety, and anger outbursts. Depression severity emerged as a significant predictor of symptom accommodation. These results suggest that symptom accommodation does apply to depression. Additional research is warranted to determine the impact accommodation has on symptom course and treatment outcome.