Attentional biases to positive and negative information in depression: Are there really related to rumination and interpersonal problems?

Introduction. Research has shown that depression is associated with attentional biases towards negatively and positively-valenced stimuli. Yet, symptoms of depression as well as cognitive mechanisms of depression are characterized by a huge heterogeneity in their expression. As a consequence, this study investigates the association of attentional biases to positive and negative information with rumination and interpersonal problems.

Method. Attentional biases for sad and happy materials were examined in three different modified version of the exogenous cueing paradigm (i.e. facial expression, pictures, and words). Sixty-five participants were assigned in three groups based on a semi-structured diagnostic interview and a completion of depressive symptoms scale (i.e. BDI-II), resulting in 17 individuals with major depressive disorder, 17 with dysphoric mood, and 31 with nondysphoric mood. Interpersonal problems, rumination, and anxiety were also assessed.

Result. There was no significant Group x Emotion effect. Irrespective of the task, relation between attentional biases and other variables were globally inconsistent in each group. Further data will be collected to enhance the statistical power.

Discussion. Given the absence of association between depression and attentional bias for negative and positive materials, our findings are at odds with the extant literature and cognitive models of depression. Implications for further research on the heterogeneous nature of depression will be discussed.