Abstract
BackgroundResearch has shown that sad mood inductions (SMIs) have effects on cognition in depression-vulnerable samples (e.g., recovered depressed patients), but not in never-depressed individuals. A recent study however, found that an SMI followed by a brief period of suppressing negative thoughts affects subsequent information processing in never-depressed individuals, even while the sad mood had already dissipated. We investigated the relevance of this finding for depression, and also whether this effect would be robust against minor procedural variations.Method32 recovered depressed and 32 never-depressed individuals underwent an SMI followed by a writing task during which either instructions to suppress negative thoughts or no instructions were given. Finally, participants completed a scrambled sentences task (SST).ResultsRecovered depressed participants unscrambled significantly more negative sentences on the SST than the control group. Thought suppression did not affect performance in either group. SST performance correlated with various aspects of cognitive reactivity.ConclusionA brief period of thought suppression during sadness does not have an effect on cognition in never-depressed nor in recovered depressed individuals.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.