Abnormal Studies

aim of Ruiz-caballero and Gonzalez

Investigate if there is memory bias in people with depression

method of Ruiz-caballero and Gonzalez

Sample of collage students with depression and without depression - Gave them short word stem completion task Observed if students would recall words with negative or positive connotation

results of Ruiz-caballero and Gonzalez

Depressed people showed memory bias for negative words

conclusion of Ruiz-caballero and Gonzalez

schemas affect memory , if they were depressed they made more negative relationships as they already developed thoughts that makes them have negative perspectives

Aim of alloy et al

to see if one's thinking patterns could be used to predict the onset depression

Method of alloy et al

longitudinal study (followed for 6 years)

Participants of alloy et al

randomly selected americans

Procedure of alloy et al

-their thinking style was tested in the beginning of the study -they were placed in either the positive cognitive group (low risk) or the negative cognitive group (high risk) based on the number of tests such as the cognitive style questionnaire

Results of alloy et al

-after 6 years, the researchers found that only 1% of those in the positive thinking group developed depression, compared to 17% in the negative thinking group

Aim of Brown and Harris

To determine what factors may play a role in the higher prevalence of depression in English women.

Procedure of Brown and Harris

458 women in South London were surveyed on their daily life and depressive episodes. The researchers focused on important biographical details - life events.

Results of Brown and Harris

They found that 8% of the women had been diagnosed as depressed. 90% of those women had experienced adverse life experiences in the past year. This was compared to only 30% of women who were not depressed. — Found that most women who had experienced depression had suffered from adversity. Working class women with children were more likely to develop depression than middle class women with children. There were protective factors such as intimacy with husband or friends

Conclusion of Brown and Harris

The study showed that social factors in the form of life-stress (or serious life-events) could be linked to depression. The fact that working-class mothers were more likely to develop depression than middle-class mothers showed risk factors associated with social class. According to Brown and Harris, low social status leads to increased exposure to vulnerability factors and provoking agents, whereas high social status was associated with increased exposure to protective factors and decreased exposure to provoking agents.

Aim of Chiao and Blizinsky

Investigate rates of depression with both individualism-collectivism and genetic variations of the 5HTT gene

Method of Chiao and Blizinsky

Used correlational data to map rates of depression, IvsC and variations of the 5HTT gene.

Results of Chiao and Blizinsky

· East Asians carried the shorter versions of the serotonin transporter gene at twice the rate of Europeans and North Americans -Suffered half the rates of depression and anxiety

Conclusion of Chiao and Blizinsky

· Theorised that the mismatch might be explained by cultural factors - Collectivism and serotonin transporter gene = co-evolved - Collectivism protect individuals from depression through community