The Development of Depressogenic Cognitive Styles: The Role of Negative Childhood Life Events and Parental Inferential Feedback

This study examined the role of childhood negative life events and parental inferential feedback in the development of cognitive vulnerability to depression. Students with negative cognitive styles, previously shown to be at high cognitive risk for depression, were predicted to have a greater history of negative childhood life events and negative parental inferential feedback than were students at low cognitive risk for depression. It was further predicted that parental inferential feedback would moderate the relationship between negative childhood life events and cognitive risk for depression. Finally, the associations between subsets of childhood negative life events and cognitive risk for depression were examined. No significant main effects were found for childhood negative life events or parental inferential feedback. The interaction of these 2 variables was significantly associated with cognitive risk status. Specifically, high levels of negative childhood life events in combination with negative maternal inferential feedback were associated with students’ cognitive risk for depression. When the negative childhood life events were divided into subsets, no main effects or interactions were found.