Rumination relates to reduced autobiographical memory specificity in formerly depressed patients following a self-discrepancy challenge: The case of autobiographical memory specificity reactivity

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Abstract

Background and objectives

Reduced Autobiographical Memory Specificity (rAMS) is a hypothesized vulnerability factor for depression. Rumination is thought to be one of the processes underlying rAMS, but research has failed to show an association between trait rumination and rAMS in individuals who are not currently depressed (e.g., community samples, college samples, and formerly depressed samples). The present study tested whether a challenge procedure that induces a self-discrepancy focus can elicit an association between trait rumination and rAMS in formerly depressed participants.

Methods

Trait rumination was assessed via self-report. Measures of psychopathology and cognitive function, including depression, were assessed via self-report and interview. Autobiographical Memory Specificity (AMS) was evaluated before and after the induction of a self-discrepancy focus in formerly depressed participants.

Results

Results showed that trait rumination was indeed negatively correlated with AMS after, but not before the induction. Moreover, high trait ruminating participants showed a decrease in AMS following the induction. In other words, memory specificity was reactive to the induction, but no such decrease was observed in low trait ruminating individuals.

Limitations

This study is mostly of women. These results may not generalize well to men. Our experimental control was within-subjects, which, although powerful and economical, cannot rule out certain confounding processes including natural changes in self-discrepancy, or non-specific or unintended effects of the induction.

Conclusions

In order to detect rAMS in formerly depressed individuals or to observe associations between rAMS and trait measures of rumination, state ruminative processing needs to be activated. Results are discussed by framing rAMS as an example of cognitive reactivity, a general type of processing that is associated with depression.

Highlights

► Autobiographical memory specificity (AMS) was evaluated in formerly depressed. ► We induced a self-discrepancy focus in between two AMS evaluations. ► Trait rumination was related to reduced AMS after, but not before the induction. ► High (vs low) trait ruminators showed a decrease in AMS following the induction. ► rAMS may be one instance of cognitive reactivity in depression.

Section snippets

Participants

We recruited 50 recovered depressed individuals who had suffered from multiple major depressive episodes (9 men; age, M = 30.3, SD = 14.1 years; range: 18–70). They were recruited through local press advertisements and email invitations to mailing lists within the University of Leuven. Inclusion criteria were (a) being 18–70 years of age, (b) a history of at least two episodes of major depression, (c) at least one of those episodes was within the past two years, (d) not currently being in a

Results

An alpha level of .05 was used for all statistical tests. Table 1 displays means of visual analogue scales and key types of memories from the AMT.

Discussion

As predicted, trait rumination was associated with reduced Autobiographical Memory Specificity (rAMS) in formerly depressed patients following a self-discrepancy focus induction. Before the induction, no relationship was observed between trait rumination and AMS. Together with the results of Crane et al. (2007a) our findings may offer an explanation for why trait rumination scores are often related to rAMS in clinical groups, but seldom in groups that are not currently ill. Perhaps a current,

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by a Research Programme of the Research Foundation-Flanders (FWO) (G.0339.08). The writing of this paper was further supported by KU Leuven Center of Excellence on Generalization Research (GRIP*TT; PF/10/005) and the support of the FWO to Dr. Griffith (GP.035.11N).

All authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

The funding sources (FWO and KU Leuven) had no role in the study design; in the collection, analysis and interpretation of data; in the writing of

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    Dr. Griffith is a research assistant professor in the Department of Medical Social Sciences and Northwestern University and a Senior Visiting Fellow FWO (GP.035.11N) at the University of Leuven.

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