Is the Promissory Note of Personality as Vulnerability to Depression in Default? Reply to Zuroff, Mongrain, and Santor (2004).

Abstract

In contrast to D. C. Zuroff, M. Mongrain, and D. A. Santor (2004), the current authors find the promissory note of dependency-sociotropy (DEP-SOC) and self-criticism-autonomy (SC-AUT) as a model of risk for depression to be in default. The authors propose reorganizing what has been cast as unitary effort into 3 distinct endeavors: a psychoanalytic clinical theory, development of a refined empirical model of risk for clinical depression, and research examining the effects of DEP-SOC and SC-AUT on interpersonal relationships in nonclinical samples. The authors identify some issues that need to be accommodated regardless of whether the assessment of Zuroff et al. ( 2004) or their own is accepted. DEP-SOC and SC-AUT are best construed as correlated, continuous dimensions. Future work also needs to accommodate depression as chronic recurrent condition, advances in developmental psychopathology, and more stringent criteria for positing a risk factor for clinical disorder.Truth lives . . . for the most part on a credit system. Our thoughts and beliefs "pass," so long as nothing challenges them, just as bank-notes pass as long as nobody refuses them. (James, 1978, p. 97

Dependency and self-criticism: relationship with major depressive disorder, severity of depression, and clinical presentation

“…Further research is needed to investigate this suggestion. Furthermore, an important issue is whether elevated levels of dependency and self-criticism in the clinical samples may reflect state and/or scar effects of previous episodes of depression [Coyne et al, 2004]. Although studies have shown that both dependency and self-criticism are relatively stable personality dimensions [Luyten et al, 2005;Zuroff et al, 1999Zuroff et al, , 2004, with state effects accounting for only a minor proportion of variance in scores on the DEQ Dependency and Self-Criticism subscales, and evidence for the scar hypothesis is limited [Zuroff et al, 2004], some studies have had more mixed results [Klein et al, 2002].…”

“…Because the majority of these studies have involved normal subjects, however, the extent to which these findings generalize to severity of depression in patients with MDD remains unclear [Coyne et al, 2004;Enns et al, 2001]. In addition, the difference in association between dependency and self-criticism and severity of depression might depend on the measure of depression used.…”

“…It remains unclear whether dependency and selfcriticism are specifically associated with major depressive disorder [MDD; e.g., Coyne et al, 2004]. For instance, elevated levels of self-criticism have been found in a variety of psychiatric disorders, such as in eating and anxiety disorders [Bagby et al, 1992;Cox et al, 2000Cox et al, , 2004a, as well as in functional disorders such as chronic fatigue syndrome .…”

Dados Psicométricos Adicionais Da Versão Portuguesa Do Questionário De Experiências Depressivas

“…Apesar da aceitação do QED, alguns investigadores têm apresentado algumas críticas ao instrumento, inclusivamente questionado a sua validade (e.g., Coyne & Whiffen, 1995;Coyne, Thompson, & Whiffen 2004;Desmet, Vanheule, & Verhaeghe, 2006;Lehman et al, 1997;Viglione, Philp, Clemmey, & Camenzuli, 1990). Uma das críticas que foi realizada tem a ver com o próprio sistema de cotação, demasiado complexo, e baseado em pesos factoriais, em que cada item entra na cotação dos diversos factores.…”

The Italian version of the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire: psychometric properties and validation in students, community, and clinical groups

“…Nevertheless, some investigators have questioned its validity (e.g., Coyne, Thompson, & Whiffen, 2004;Coyne & Whiffen, 1995;Desmet, Vanheule, & Verhaeghe, 2006;Lehman et al, 1997;Viglione, Clemmey, & Camenzuli, 1990). First, the relative predictive utility of self-criticism versus dependency remains unclear.…”