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  • Review Article
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Neural mechanisms of the cognitive model of depression

Key Points

  • Beck's cognitive model of depression, which posits that depressive symptoms are generated and maintained by a combination of maladaptive cognitions, has been the predominant theory of depression dating back to its conception over 40 years ago.

  • According to the cognitive model, individuals with depression are prone to selectively attend to negative stimuli (biased attention), experience greater perception and awareness for negative stimuli (biased processing), ruminate excessively about depressive ideas (biased thought and rumination), recall depressive episodes with disproportionate frequency (biased memory) and to posses negative internal representations about the self the environment (dysfunctional attitudes and negative schemas).

  • Biased attention may stem from an inability to disengage attention from aversive stimuli, which correlates with decreased activation in the superior parietal lobe, ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). In addition, aberrant rostral anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) activity indicates that inhibition of negative items may be less efficient in individuals with depression.

  • Biased processing of emotional stimuli is associated with greater and more sustained amygdala reactivity, accompanied by left DLPFC hypoactivity and right DLPFC hyperactivity. Patients with depression also experience diminished positive affect and reward response, associated with decreased nucleus accumbens and prefrontal activity.

  • Biased thoughts and rumination, which are frequently self-referential, are associated with a functional network that includes hyperactivity in the amygdala, hippocampus, subgenual cingulate and medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC), as well as altered rostral ACC activity.

  • Biased memory is associated with amygdala hyperactivity, which is positively correlated with activity in the hippocampus, caudate and putamen. Differing levels of activation in the ventral MPFC during happy and sad self-referential memories support the idea that the depressed brain requires less cognitive effort to recall negative events.

  • Dysfunctional attitudes and negative schemas are associated with decreased connectivity between the dorsal ACC and the limbic system, which suggests impaired cognitive control. The degree of connectivity is negatively correlated with activity in the amygdala, MPFC, and rostral and ventral ACC, suggesting that attenuated regulation allows for a more salient experience of aversive situations.

  • In summary, maladaptive thoughts seem to be instigated and maintained by increased bottom-up reactivity (most notably in regions such as the amygdala, hippocampus, subgenual cingulate, and ventral and rostral ACC) combined with attenuated cognitive control as manifested by decreased top-down influence (most notably from areas such as the DLPFC, VLPFC and dorsal ACC) on these lower brain regions.

Abstract

In the 40 years since Aaron Beck first proposed his cognitive model of depression, the elements of this model — biased attention, biased processing, biased thoughts and rumination, biased memory, and dysfunctional attitudes and schemas — have been consistently linked with the onset and maintenance of depression. Although numerous studies have examined the neural mechanisms that underlie the cognitive aspects of depression, their findings have not been integrated with Beck's cognitive model. In this Review, we identify the functional and structural neurobiological architecture of Beck's cognitive model of depression. Although the mechanisms underlying each element of the model differ, in general the negative cognitive biases in depression are facilitated by increased influence from subcortical emotion processing regions combined with attenuated top-down cognitive control.

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Figure 1: Information processing in the cognitive model of depression.
Figure 2: Putative cognitive neurobiological model of biased attention for negative stimuli in individuals with depression.
Figure 3: Putative cognitive neurobiological model of biased processing of negative stimuli in individuals with depression.
Figure 4: Putative cognitive neurobiological model of ruminative thought in individuals with depression.
Figure 5: Putative cognitive neurobiological model of biased memory for negative stimuli in individuals with depression.
Figure 6: Putative cognitive neurobiological model of self-referential schemas in individuals with depression.
Figure 7: Summary of an integrated cognitive neurobiological model of depression.

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Acknowledgements

Preparation of this article was supported by grant MH076897 and MH092430 from the US National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) to C.B. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIMH or the National Institutes of Health. The authors wish to thank A. Butler, B. Gibb, and G. Siegle for discussions about ideas contained in this article, and three anonymous reviewers for their helpful feedback.

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Glossary

Schemas

Internal beliefs or representations of stimuli, ideas or experiences that — if negative — can simultaneously contribute to and be exacerbated by depressive symptoms.

Cognitive hierarchy

An ordering of brain regions based on the relative complexity and abstraction of their cognitive functions.

Dysphoria

A negative mood state characterized by feelings of discontent, anguish, distress and depression.

Anterior cingulate cortex

(ACC). The frontal part of the cingulate cortex. As with many brain areas, subdivisions within the ACC, such as the dorsal, rostral and ventral ACC, are determined by functional differences rather than anatomical landmarks. As such, 'boundaries' for these regions may vary slightly across studies.

Thought record

A tool used in cognitive therapy to help to identify erroneous thought patterns and assist in the formulation of more balanced thoughts.

Guided discovery

The process of asking questions in order to uncover and evaluate the validity and functionality of beliefs about oneself, the world and other people.

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Disner, S., Beevers, C., Haigh, E. et al. Neural mechanisms of the cognitive model of depression. Nat Rev Neurosci 12, 467–477 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn3027

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