Biases in Visual Attention in Depressed and Nondepressed Individuals
- 1 July 1988
- journal article
- research article
- Published by Taylor & Francis Ltd in Cognition and Emotion
- Vol. 2 (3), 185-200
- https://doi.org/10.1080/02699938808410923
Abstract
The present study utilised a cognitive paradigm to examine attentional biases in mildly depressed persons. Twelve depressed and 12 nondepressed subjects completed an attentional task similar to that employed by MacLeod, Mathews, and Tata (1986). A tachistiscope was used to present subjects with a series of word pairs, each with one word printed above the other. Three types of word pairs were presented: manic-neutral, depressed-neutral, and manic-depressed. Selective attention to one member of a word pair was assessed using ac perception task. Based on cognitive models of depression, it was hypothesised that the depressed subjects would attend more to depressed-content words than to manic- or neutral-content words, whereas the nondepressed subjects would not exhibit any attentional biases. In contrast to these predictions, analyses indicated that whereas the depressed subjects attended equally to depressed-, manic-, and neutral-content words, the nondepressed subjects attended more to manic-content than they did to neutral- or depressed-content words. These results add support to the documentation of evenhandedness in the cognitive functioning of depressed subjects, and of self-sewing biases in nondepressed subjects. The present findings are discussed in terms of a zoom lens model of attention, in which depressed persons attempt to exhaustively process their sensory world, but with a loss of attentional resolution. In contrast, nondepressed individuals attempt to process a more limited portion of their sensory world, but with an increase in attentional power. Finally, directions for future research in this area are offered.Keywords
This publication has 32 references indexed in Scilit:
- Construct accessibility and clinical depression: A longitudinal investigation.Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 1987
- Issues and recommendations regarding use of the Beck Depression InventoryCognitive Therapy and Research, 1987
- Studying the role of cognition in depression: Well-trodden paths and cul-de-sacsCognitive Therapy and Research, 1986
- Selective processing of threat cues in anxiety statesBehaviour Research and Therapy, 1985
- Perception and recall of interpersonal feedback: Negative bias in depressionCognitive Therapy and Research, 1983
- Selective memory and depression: A cautionary note concerning response biasCognitive Therapy and Research, 1983
- Recall of importance ratings of completed and uncompleted tasks as a function of depressionCognitive Therapy and Research, 1983
- Relationships among self-monitoring processes, memory, and depressionCognitive Therapy and Research, 1980
- The self-schema and subjective organization of personal information in depressionCognitive Therapy and Research, 1979
- Distortion of perception and recall of positive and neutral feedback in depressionCognitive Therapy and Research, 1977