Do depressive symptoms “blunt” effort? An analysis of cardiac engagement and withdrawal for an increasingly difficult task

Abstract

Research on depression and effort has suggested “depressive blunting”—lower cardiovascular reactivity in response to challenges and stressors. Many studies, however, find null effects or higher reactivity. The present research draws upon motivational intensity theory, a broad model of effort that predicts cases in which depressive symptoms should increase or decrease effort. Because depressive symptoms can influence task-difficulty appraisals—people see tasks as subjectively harder—people high in depressive symptoms should engage higher effort at objectively easier levels of difficulty but also quit sooner. A sample of adults completed a mental effort challenge with four levels of difficulty, from very easy to difficult-but-feasible. Depressive symptoms were assessed with the CESD and DASS; effort-related cardiac activity was assessed via markers of contractility (e.g., the cardiac pre-ejection period [PEP]) obtained with impedance cardiography. The findings supported the theory’s predictions. When the task was relatively easier, people high in depressive symptoms showed higher contractility (shorter PEP), consistent with greater effort. When the task was relatively harder, people high in depressive symptoms showed diminished contractility, consistent with quitting. The results suggest that past research has been observing a small part of a larger trajectory of trying and quitting, and they illustrate the value of a theoretically grounded analysis of depressive symptoms and effort-related cardiac activity.

The impact of goal adjustment and caregiver burden on psychological distress among caregivers of cancer patients

“…Furthermore, “unattainability” is in the eye of the beholder, and while some people may be reluctant to accept that a goal is unattainable, others (ie, those with depression) may be much too quick to do so. Researchers have suggested that disengagement in the context of clinical depression may be maladaptive and reflect goal abandonment or premature “giving up.” This notion is consistent with prior research showing that depressed individuals disengage more quickly from difficult tasks and fail to appropriately calibrate mobilization of effort according to task difficulty …”

“…35 This notion is consistent with prior research showing that depressed individuals disengage more quickly from difficult tasks 36 and fail to appropriately calibrate mobilization of effort according to task difficulty. 37 Thus, researchers have suggested that successful goal adjustment, in the face of unattainable goals, also requires goal reengagement. 20,21 Specifically, individuals who are able to reengage in new goals experience more positive emotions 27,38 and fewer depressive symptoms.…”

Perfectionism and Effort-Related Cardiac Activity: Do Perfectionists Try Harder?

“…Past research has shown that individual differences in perfectionism predict effort measured by self-reported effort and time spent practicing [ 12 , 14 , 15 ]. However, within the current study, perfectionism did not predict effort in a paradigm that has been effective in examining whether individual-differences predict effort (i.e., grit, self-focused attention, and anhedonic depression; [ 25 , 36 , 43 ]). Moving forward with research on perfectionism and motivation, it will be important to use physiological measures of effort in addition to self-report and performance measures because these indicators of effort commonly diverge.…”

“…For each physiological outcome, scores for the 5 baseline minutes were averaged to form a baseline value, and scores for the 3 parity task minutes were averaged to form a task value. We analyzed the data using regression models, as in our recent work [ 43 , 44 ]. Reactivity scores—change from baseline to task—were computed by subtracting the baseline value from the task value.…”

Task-specific prioritization of reward and effort information: Novel insights from behavior and computational modeling

“…Fourth, Experiment 2 indicates that prioritizing benefit over cost information influences preference and decision. Recent research showed altered effort-based decision-making in patients with depression (Silvia et al, 2016;Treadway, Bossaller, Shelton, & Zald, 2012;Yang et al, 2014), schizophrenia (Barch, Treadway, & Schoen, 2014;Culbreth, Westbrook, & Barch, 2016;McCarthy, Treadway, Bennett, & Blanchard, 2016), and bipolar disorder (Hershenberg et al, 2016). Generally, these populations tend either to avoid more effortful tasks or to show inefficient effort allocation.…”