Abstract
This study tested whether sensitivity to aversive events is a concomitant versus antecedent/consequent of depression. Twenty currently depressed subjects, twenty subjects with remitted depression, and twenty control subjects completed psychophysiological and learning tasks involving aversive components. Both currently depressed and remitted subjects, when compared to control subjects, exhibited greater decreases in skin resistance response reactions to negative social scenes and a greater sensitivity to extinction in the learning condition involving an aversive component. The fact that the responses of remitted subjects were very similar to those of currently depressed subjects on both tasks is consistent with the view that sensitivity to aversive events is an antecedent or consequent of depression, as opposed to being only a concomitant. The results also provide some support for the passive avoidance model of depression.
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This study was based on portions of a doctoral dissertation by the first author, with the second author as chairperson, at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
This research was aided by a Grant-in-Aid of Research to the first author from Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society, an award from the Jill Shelby Memorial Fund to the first author, and support from National Institute of Mental Health Grant MH17071, awarded to C. R. Snyder.
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Sigmon, S.T., Nelson-Gray, R.O. Sensitivity to aversive events in depression: Antecedent, concomitant, or consequent?. J Psychopathol Behav Assess 14, 225–246 (1992). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00962630
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00962630