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Studies of clinical significance have demonstrated that Cognitive Therapy provides effective treatment for depression and produce clinically significant benefits for a substantial number of clients (Persons, J., Davidson, J., & Tompkins, M). Many studies have reported that cognitive therapy has greater long-term effects than drug therapy (Beck, A & Weishaar, 1989, p. 201). Cognitive therapy has become more and more popular over the years because it is a short-term form of psychotherapy that is cost-effective and tend to present empirically validated results. Following are summaries of studies that provide empirical evidence for the cognitive causal model of depression. If you want more information on the articles, click on the link.
Broad Literature Review on Depression
Treatment
An article published
by Psychological Science in the Public Interest reports an extensive literature
comparison on different approaches to the treatment of depression (cognitive
behavioral, interpersonal, and medical) and found that "cognitive behavioral
therapy has performed well in a number of controlled trials in fully clinical
populations (as cited in Hollon, Thase, & Markowitz, 2002, p. 61).
Hollon,
Thase, and Markowitz (2002) have reported that the effects of
cognitive therapy seem to endure at least as long as the effects of medications
alone according to the studies reviewed.
Dysfunctional Attitudes and Depression
Various studies
have found empirical evidence that support the cognitive model of depression
(Clark & Beck, 1999) . Bothwell
and Scott (1997) report
that dysfunctional attitudes, in other words, 'faulty thinking' or 'errors
in cognitive processing,' especially those related to need for approval
and low self-esteem can predict persistence of depressed symptoms after
inpatient care.
Rumination and Depression
Recent theories
and treatment developments of depression suggest that increased awareness
of mental processes can shift people away from ruminative thinking and
reduce depressive relapse. Rumination is a common cognitive processing
error engaged in by depressed people. (Watkings
& Baracaia, 2002) tested the hypothesis
that "impaired social problem solving in depression is a consequence of
state-oriented rumnination," which can be improved by increasing awareness
of mental processes.
Self-concept and Depression
Teichman, Bar-El, Shor, and
Elizur (2002) examined the relationship
between variables such as self-concept, self and spouse prescribed hostility,
spouses' level of depression, involvement in home activities and the severity
of depression. Multiple regression analyses of the data indicated that
self-concept had the most powerful association with depression, unrelated
to level of depression or gender. According to the authors, this finding
suggests there is a definite linkage between one's cognitive component
and severity of depression since self-concept is intrinsically associated
with the way people conceive and experience themselves (one of the basic
aspects of cognitive theory of depression).