Relation Between Attributional Style and Subsequent Depressive Symptoms: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Longitudinal Studies

This meta-analysis examined the relation between attributional style and subsequent depressive symptoms. Results were based on 52 longitudinal studies comprising 57 samples involving 12,594 participants. A moderate correlation was found between depressogenic explanatory style of negative events and subsequent depressive symptoms. Controlling for prior depressive symptoms, the weighted mean effect of prior negative attributional style on subsequent depressive symptoms was small at β = .10. The relation between attributional style and subsequent depressive symptoms was not associated with moderators including publication status, attributional style measure, depression measure, delay between assessments, mean age, participant gender, and ethnicity.