Sensitivity to reward and punishment in major depressive disorder: Effects of rumination and of single versus multiple experiences

In the current study, we examined the postulation that rumination makes it difficult for depressed individuals to learn the exact probability that different stimuli will be associated with punishment. To do so, we induced rumination or distraction in depressed and never-depressed participants and then measured punishment and reward sensitivity with a probabilistic selection task. In this task, participants first learn the probability that different stimuli will be associated with reward and punishment. During a subsequent test phase in which novel combinations of stimuli are presented, participants’ sensitivity to reward is tested by measuring their tendency to select the stimuli that were most highly rewarded during training, and their sensitivity to punishment is tested by measuring their tendency to not select the stimuli that were most highly punished during training. Compared with distraction, rumination led depressed participants to be less sensitive to the probability that stimuli will be associated with punishment and relatively less sensitive to punishment than reward. Never-depressed participants and depressed participants who were distracted from rumination were as sensitive to reward as they were to punishment. The effects of rumination on sensitivity to punishment may be a mechanism by which rumination can lead to maladaptive consequences.     

Switching and backward inhibition in major depressive disorder: the role of rumination

Previous studies have demonstrated that individuals with major depressive disorder have difficulties switching attention from one task set to another. In the current study we examined whether ruminative thinking drives the switching deficits of depressed individuals. A secondary, more exploratory, goal of this study was to examine whether state rumination would impair depressed individuals' ability to activate a new task set, to inhibit a no longer relevant task set, or both. Participants underwent either a rumination induction or a distraction induction and then completed a backward inhibition task that measures general switching abilities and the ability to inhibit previous task sets. Although depression was not related to switching ability as a main effect, depressed individuals who were induced to ruminate exhibited poorer switching ability than did both depressed and control individuals who were distracted from ruminating and control participants who were induced to ruminate. These findings suggest that depressed individuals are characterized by switching deficits only if they are ruminating. Moreover, the finding that state rumination did not affect participants' ability to inhibit previous task sets suggests that state rumination primarily impairs noninhibitory task-switching processes. It is interesting that the opposite pattern of results was obtained for trait rumination, which was related to inhibitory deficits during switching, but not to generally poorer switching. Thus, state and trait rumination may be associated with dissociable cognitive deficits.     

Associations Between Dopamine D2 Receptor (<Emphasis Type="Italic">DRD2</Emphasis>) Gene,Maternal Positive Parenting and Trajectories of Depressive Symptoms from Early to Mid-Adolescence

Using data from the Longitudinal Study of Chinese Children and Adolescents (LSCCA), this study is the first to examine the roles of the dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) gene polymorphisms (i.e., TaqIA and A241G) and maternal positive parenting at ages 10 and 11 years in the trajectories of depressive symptoms from early to mid-adolescence (ages 11 to 16 years). In a sample of 1090 Chinese adolescents (50% girls), three trajectories of depressive symptoms were identified: (i) low-stable (36.1%), (ii) moderate-increasing (44.5%), and (iii) high-increasing (19.4%). A241G AA homozygotes and youth exposed to lower levels of maternal positive parenting were both at increased odds to follow the high-increasing vs. low-stable trajectory. Moreover, the A241G polymorphism interacted with maternal positive parenting to distinguish the moderate-increasing trajectory from the high-increasing and the low-stable trajectories. For A241G G-allele carriers, but not AA homozygotes, exposure to high quality of maternal parenting decreased the odds to follow the high-increasing vs. moderate-increasing trajectory of depressive symptoms. For AA homozygotes, but not G-allele carriers, high quality of maternal parenting increased the odds to follow the low-stable vs. moderate-increasing trajectory. The DRD2 TaqIA polymorphism had neither a direct nor an interactive effect with maternal positive parenting on trajectory membership. The current findings highlight the importance of investigating gene-by-environment interactions (G × E) in trajectories of depressive symptoms over adolescence, and support a developmental versus static nature of G × E effects.     

The response styles theory of depression: A test of specificity and causal mediation

This prospective study tested the diathesis-stress and causal mediation components of the response styles theory of depression. In addition, it examined whether rumination predicts increases in anxious as well as depressive symptoms. At Time 1, 87 college students completed measures of rumination, hopelessness, depressive symptoms, and anxious symptoms. Participants also completed measures of hopelessness, depressive symptoms, and anxious symptoms at three time points later in the semester: immediately after receiving their most difficult midterm exam grade (Time 2), 4–8 hours later (Time 3), and 4 days later (Time 4). Regardless of exam outcome, the tendency to ruminate in response to depressed mood was associated with: (1) increases in anxious symptoms between Time 1 and Time 3; and (2) increases in both anxious and depressive symptoms between Time 1 and Time 4. In addition, the relationship between rumination and increases in both depressive and anxious symptoms was mediated by hopelessness. In other words, individuals with a ruminative response style exhibited increases in both depressive and anxious symptoms because they exhibited increases in hopelessness.     

When Being Discrepant from One's Ideal or Ought Selves Hurts: The Moderating Role of Neuroticism

Self‐discrepancy theory posits that people experience emotional consequences when they perceive discrepancies between their actual and possible selves. However, the extent to which people react emotionally to these self‐discrepancies (i.e. ideal, ought and undesired) may be a function of individual differences in neuroticism. Across both experimental (Study 1; N = 155) and correlational designs (Study 2; N = 139) involving college students, the authors demonstrated that neuroticism moderated the discrepancy–emotion associations such that high‐neuroticism individuals showed elevated depression and anxiety symptoms when their self‐discrepancies were activated. The heightened symptoms were maintained over time. Negative repetitive thoughts (i.e. rumination and worry) were examined as potential mediating mechanisms between the discrepancy × neuroticism interaction and symptoms. Partial support was obtained in that rumination mediated between undesired discrepancy × neuroticism interaction and anxious/depressive symptoms. Implications and possible theoretical extensions for self‐discrepancy theory are discussed. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Responses to Positive Affect in Daily Life: Positive Rumination and Dampening Moderate the Association Between Daily Events and Depressive Symptoms

Depressive rumination has been strongly linked to the development and maintenance of depression; however, less attention has been paid to ruminative processes in response to positive affect, and fewer have examined these processes in daily life. The current study sought to address these gaps by exploring depressive rumination and two forms of responses to positive affect, dampening and positive rumination, under ecologically valid conditions using daily diary methodology. One hundred fifty-seven young adults completed 14-day end-of-day diaries assessing positive affect and depressive symptoms in relation to depressive rumination, responses to positive affect, and daily positive and negative events. Daily depressive rumination predicted stronger associations between negative events and daily depressive symptoms. Higher daily dampening was associated with higher daily depressive symptoms and decreased positive affect and predicted lower associations between daily positive events and improvements in mood (including reduced daily positive affect and increased daily depressive symptoms). Higher daily positive rumination was negatively associated with daily depressive symptoms and interacted with daily positive events such that positive rumination had a greater impact on depressed mood on days when positive experiences were low. Results indicate that both depressive rumination and responses to positive affect play a role in influencing daily mood and depressive symptoms.     

Self-Compassion in Depression: Associations With Depressive Symptoms,Rumination, and Avoidance in Depressed Outpatients

Self-compassion involves being kind to oneself when challenged with personal weaknesses or hardship and has been claimed to be associated with resilience in various areas. So far, there are only a handful of studies that investigate self-compassion and its relation to clinical depression. Therefore, the principal goals of the present study were (a) to compare self-compassion in clinically depressed patients and never-depressed subjects, (b) to investigate self-compassion and its relation to cognitive-behavioral avoidance and rumination in depressed outpatients, and (c) to investigate rumination and avoidance as mediators of the relationship between self-compassion and depressive symptoms. One hundred and forty-two depressed outpatients and 120 never-depressed individuals from a community sample completed a self-report measure of self-compassion along with other measures. Results indicate that depressed patients showed lower levels of self-compassion than never-depressed individuals, even when controlled for depressive symptoms. In depressed outpatients, self-compassion was negatively related to depressive symptoms, symptom-focused rumination, as well as cognitive and behavioral avoidance. Additionally, symptom-focused rumination and cognitive and behavioral avoidance mediated the relationship between self-compassion and depressive symptoms. These findings extend previous research on self-compassion, its relation to depression, as well as processes mediating this relationship, and highlight the importance of self-compassion in clinically depressed patients. Since depressed patients seem to have difficulties adopting a self-compassionate attitude, psychotherapists are well advised to explore and address how depressed patients treat themselves.     

Rejection sensitivity prospectively predicts increased rumination

Converging research findings indicate that rumination is correlated with a specific maladaptive interpersonal style encapsulating submissive (overly-accommodating, non-assertive and self-sacrificing) behaviours, and an attachment orientation characterised by rejection sensitivity. This study examined the prospective longitudinal relationship between rumination, the submissive interpersonal style, and rejection sensitivity by comparing two alternative hypotheses: (a) the submissive interpersonal style and rejection sensitivity prospectively predict increased rumination; (b) rumination prospectively predicts the submissive interpersonal style and rejection sensitivity. Currently depressed (n = 22), previously depressed (n = 42) and never depressed (n = 28) individuals completed self-report measures assessing depressive rumination and key psychosocial measures of interpersonal style and behaviours, at baseline and again six months later. Baseline rejection sensitivity prospectively predicted increased rumination six months later, after statistically controlling for baseline rumination, gender and depression. Baseline rumination did not predict the submissive interpersonal style or rejection sensitivity. The results provide a first step towards delineating a potential casual relationship between rejection sensitivity and rumination, and suggest the potential value of clinical assessment and intervention for both rejection sensitivity and rumination in individuals who present with either difficulty.     

Brooding rumination and attentional biases in currently non-depressed individuals: an eye-tracking study

Both rumination and attentional biases have been proposed as key components of the RDoC Negative Valence Systems construct of Loss. Although theorists have proposed that rumination, particularly brooding rumination, should be associated with increased sustained attention to depression-relevant information, it is not clear whether this link would be observed in a non-depressed sample or whether it is specific to brooding versus reflective rumination. To address these questions, the current study examined the link between brooding rumination and attentional biases in a sample of non-depressed individuals (n?=?105). Attentional biases were assessed using eye tracking during a passive viewing task in which participants were presented with 2?×?2 arrays of angry, happy, sad, and neutral faces. In line with predictions, higher levels of brooding rumination were associated with greater sustained attention to sad faces and less sustained attention to happy faces. These results remained significant after controlling for participants’ prior history of major depression and current nonclinical level of depressive symptoms, suggesting that the link between brooding rumination and attentional biases is at least partially independent of current or past depression.     

A Test of the Habit-Goal Framework of Depressive Rumination and Its Relevance to Cognitive Reactivity

The aim of the present study was to test predictions derived from the habit-goal framework of depressive rumination and investigate its relevance to cognitive reactivity—another well-known vulnerability factor to depression. Formerly depressed (FD; n = 20) and never depressed (ND; n = 22) participants completed self-report measures of rumination, cognitive reactivity, and habitual characteristics of rumination (e.g., lack of awareness, control, intent). A standard mood-induction task was also used to measure cognitive reactivity and an outcome-devaluation task to measure general habit vs. goal-directed behavior control. Habitual characteristics of ruminative thoughts were greater in the FD group and were related to depressive brooding and cognitive reactivity, but not reflective pondering. Reliance on habit on the outcome-devaluation task was strongly correlated with number of depression episodes, although group differences were not observed in general habit vs. goal-directed control. Habitual characteristics of rumination (e.g., greater automaticity) may explain reactivity and persistence of negative thoughts in depression. Habitual behavior control may contribute to inflexible responding and vulnerability for depression episodes.     

Competitive Memory Training for treating depression and rumination in depressed older adults: a randomized controlled trial

Although rumination is an important mediator of depressive symptoms, there is insufficient proof that an intervention that specifically targets rumination ameliorates the clinical condition of, depressed patients. This study investigates whether a time-limited cognitive behavioral intervention (Competitive Memory Training, or COMET for depressive rumination) is an effective treatment for depression and rumination. This intervention was tested in older adult depressed outpatients. A total of 93 patients (aged ≥65 years with major depression and suffering from rumination) were treated in small groups according to the COMET protocol in addition to their regular treatment. Patients were randomized to two treatment conditions: 7 weeks of COMET + treatment-as-usual (TAU) versus TAU only. COMET + TAU showed a significant improvement in depression and rumination compared with TAU alone. This study shows that the transdiagnostic COMET protocol for depressive rumination might also be successful in treating depression and rumination in older adults.     

DRD2基因TaqIA多态性与同伴侵害对青少年早期抑郁的交互作用

本研究运用问卷法与DNA分型技术,对1063名青少年(初次测评年龄为12.32±0.47岁,50.3%女生)进行间隔2年的追踪调查,考察DRD2基因TaqIA多态性与同伴身体侵害和关系侵害对青少年早期抑郁的交互作用及其性别差异。结果发现,TaqIA多态性与身体侵害、关系侵害均对男青少年抑郁存在显著的交互作用。在携带A2A2基因型的男生中,身体侵害和关系侵害可以显著正向预测其抑郁水平,而在携带A1等位基因的男生中,同伴侵害对抑郁无预测作用。此外,TaqIA多态性与身体侵害、关系侵害对女生抑郁均无显著交互作用。研究结果提示,同伴侵害是一种重要的候选环境指标,与TaqIA多态性交互影响青少年早期抑郁,并且性别在这一基因×环境交互作用中起到重要的调节效应。     

The Dopamine D4 Receptor (DRD4) Exon 3 VNTR Contributes to Adaptive Personality Differences in an Italian Small Island Population

The search for evolutionary forces shaping the diversity of human personality traits encouraged studies that have found that islanders are relatively closed and introverted, with little interest in the external world. The ‘personality gene flow’ hypothesis was proposed to explain the mechanism underlying this difference, suggesting that the frequency of alleles that influence islander personality traits might progressively increase in the gene pools on islands because of selective emigration of individuals not displaying these alleles. We genotyped 96 individuals from the Italian mainland and 117 from Giglio Island, whose residents were previously assessed regarding their personality traits. We genotyped three polymorphisms: the dopamine D4 receptor (DRD4) exon 3 repeat region, the serotonin‐transporter SLC6A4 5‐HTTLPR indel and the dopamine transporter SLC6A3 DAT1 3′UTR repeat region. Only the DRD4 exon 3 repeat was hypothesised to show varying allele frequencies because this polymorphism could be associated with human migration and personality traits such as extraversion, openness and novelty seeking. As predicted, no differences in allele frequencies were found for the SLC6A4 and SLC6A3 polymorphisms, whereas significant differences were observed in the frequency of the DRD4 exon 3 alleles. The DRD4.2 repeat was more common in mainlanders, as expected, whereas the DRD4.7 allele was over‐represented among islanders who never emigrated. This last result contradicts the suggested association of this allele with long‐distance migrations. We suggest that emigration might have caused gene flow out the island that resulted in somewhat unpredictable changes in the frequencies of specific alleles, thus influencing islander personality traits. Copyright © 2013 European Association of Personality Psychology     

Functional connectivity of reflective and brooding rumination in depressed and healthy women

Ruminative thinking is related to an increased risk for major depressive disorder (MDD) and perpetuates negative mood states. Rumination, uncontrollable negative thoughts about the self, may comprise both reflective and brooding components. However, only brooding rumination is consistently associated with increased negativity bias and negative coping styles, while reflective rumination has a less clear relationship with negative outcomes in healthy and depressed participants. The current study examined seed-to-voxel (S2.V) resting-state functional connectivity (FC) in a sample of healthy (HC) and depressed (MDD) adult women (HC: n=50, MDD: n=33). The S2V FC of six key brain regions, including the left and right amygdala, anterior and posterior cingulate cortex (ACC, PCC), and medial and dorsolateral prefrontal cortices (mPFC, dlPFC), was correlated with self-reported reflective and brooding rumination. Results indicate that HC and MDD participants had increased brooding rumination associated with decreased FC between the left amygdala and the right temporal pole. Moreover, reflective rumination was associated with distinct FC of the mPFC, PCC, and ACC with parietal, occipital, and cingulate regions. Depressed participants, compared with HC, exhibited decreased FC between the PCC and a region in the right middle frontal gyrus. The results of the current study add to the understanding of the neural underpinnings of different forms of self-related cognition—brooding and reflective rumination—in healthy and depressed women.     

Psychosocial correlates of depressive rumination

The study examined the relationship between brooding, the maladaptive sub-component of depressive rumination, an important cognitive mechanism implicated in the aetiology of depression, and a range of depressogenic psychosocial factors, including insecure attachment styles and maladaptive interpersonal behaviours. It was hypothesised that brooding (but not the more adaptive reflection component) is associated with an attachment pattern characterised by fear of rejection, and an interpersonal style characterised by submissiveness. Currently depressed (n = 29), previously depressed (n = 42) and never-depressed (n = 32) adults completed self-report measures assessing depressive symptoms, rumination (brooding and reflection), attachment orientation and maladaptive interpersonal behaviours. The study hypotheses were partially supported: After controlling for gender and depressive symptoms, brooding was significantly associated with one indicator of underlying rejection concerns (rejection sensitivity, p = .05), but was not associated with another indicator of underlying rejection concerns (anxious attachment style) or with avoidant attachment style. After controlling for depressive symptoms, brooding was uniquely associated with the submissive interpersonal style (p < .01). Brooding was not correlated with needy or cold interpersonal styles after controlling for depressive symptoms.     

Maladaptive coping, adaptive coping, and depressive symptoms: Variations across age and depressive state

Rumination has consistently been found to be associated with the onset and duration of major depressive episodes. Little research, however, has examined factors that may weaken the association between maladaptive coping, such as rumination, and depressive symptoms. In three samples of participants, including 149 never-depressed adolescent girls, 41 never-depressed women, and 39 depressed women, we examined whether generally adaptive forms of coping interacted with generally maladaptive forms of coping to predict depressive symptoms. Age-appropriate measures of coping and depression were administered to participants in each sample. In never-depressed females, maladaptive coping/rumination were more strongly related to depressive symptoms in the presence of lower levels of adaptive coping. The relation between depression and maladaptive coping/rumination was weaker in the context of higher levels of adaptive coping. In contrast, for the depressed females, we found main effects for rumination and adaptive coping, with higher levels of rumination and lower levels of adaptive coping being associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms. The present findings highlight how adaptive coping and maladaptive coping, including rumination, differentially relate to each other and depressive symptoms depending on individuals' current depressive state.     

Individual differences in flow proneness are linked to a dopamine D2 receptor gene variant

Flow is a special mental state characterized by deep concentration that occurs during the performance of optimally challenging tasks. In prior studies, proneness to experience flow has been found to be moderately heritable. In the present study, we investigated whether individual differences in flow proneness are related to a polymorphism of the dopamine D2 receptor coding gene (DRD2 C957T rs6277). This polymorphism affects striatal D2 receptor availability, a factor that has been shown to be related to flow proneness. To our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the association between this trait and a specific gene variant. In a sample of 236 healthy Hungarian adults, we found that CC homozygotes report higher flow proneness than do T allele carriers, but only during mandatory activities (i.e., studying and working), not during leisure time. We discuss implications of this result, e.g., the potential mediators of the relationship.     

Depressive Rumination and Co-Morbidity: Evidence for Brooding as a Transdiagnostic Process

A sample of 116 patients with unipolar mood disorders referred to a specialist research clinic were assessed to investigate (a) whether rumination is a transdiagnostic process that is related to co-morbid Axis I and II symptoms and diagnosis in depressed patients; (b) whether common findings in the depressive rumination literature could be replicated in a recurrent depressed sample. Consistent with the transdiagnostic hypothesis, rumination was positively associated with both depression and anxiety, brooding was related to co-morbid obsessive-compulsive disorder and generalized anxiety disorder, and rumination was associated with traits associated with borderline personality disorder, most notably self-report of unstable relationships and inconsistent sense of self. As predicted, rumination was equivalent in currently depressed and formerly depressed patients, suggesting that rumination is not simply dependent on mood state or clinical status. As predicted, the brooding subtype most strongly correlated with depressed and anxious symptoms, consistent with previous observations that brooding is the more maladaptive form of rumination. As predicted, rumination was associated with reports of sexual abuse. Inconsistent with previous findings, there was no gender difference in rumination.     

Rumination and worrying as possible mediators in the relation between neuroticism and symptoms of depression and anxiety in clinically depressed individuals

Rumination and worrying are considered possible mediating variables that may explain the relation between neuroticism and symptoms of depression and anxiety. The current study sought to examine the mediational effects of rumination and worry in the relationships between neuroticism and symptoms of depression and anxiety in a sample of clinically depressed individuals (N = 198). All patients completed a battery of questionnaires including measures of neuroticism, rumination, worrying, depression, and anxiety. Results showed that in subsequent analyses, rumination and worrying both mediated the relation between neuroticism and depression and anxiety. When rumination and worrying were simultaneously entered in the mediation analysis, only rumination was found to mediate the relation between neuroticism and symptoms of anxiety and depression. Two components of rumination (i.e., brooding and reflection) were also analyzed in the mediational analysis. Both reflection and brooding were significant mediators with respect to depressive symptoms, whereas brooding was the only significant mediator in relation to anxiety symptoms. The results are discussed in the light of current theories, previous research, and recent treatment developments. Clinical implications and suggestions for future research are provided.     

Neural correlates of rumination in depression

Rumination, or recursive self-focused thinking, has important implications for understanding the development and maintenance of depressive episodes. Rumination is associated with the worsening of negative mood states, greater affective responding to negative material, and increased access to negative memories. The present study was designed to use fMRI to examine neural aspects of rumination in depressed and healthy control individuals. We used a rumination induction task to assess differences in patterns of neural activation during ruminative self-focus as compared with a concrete distraction condition and with a novel abstract distraction condition in 14 participants who were diagnosed with major depressive disorder and 14 healthy control participants. Depressed participants exhibited increased activation in the orbitofrontal cortex, subgenual anterior cingulate, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex as compared with healthy controls during rumination versus concrete distraction. Neural activity during rumination versus abstract distraction was greater for depressed than for control participants in the amygdala, rostral anterior cingulate/medial prefrontal cortex, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, posterior cingulate, and parahippocampus. These findings indicate that ruminative self-focus is associated with enhanced recruitment of limbic and medial and dorsolateral prefrontal regions in depression. Supplemental materials for this article may be downloaded from http://cabn.psychonomic-journals.org/content/supplemental.