On the benefits of misery: self-serving biases in the depressive self-concept.
Two survey studies suggested that depressed people react to their acute distress by engaging in self-serving biases and striving to develop positive self-views. Study 1 revealed that whereas most of the specific self-views of depressed persons were relatively negative, their best (most favorable) self-views were just as favorable as the best self-views of nondepressed persons. Moreover, depressed participants reported that they were highly confident of their best self-views and considered these beliefs extremely important. Analyses equating depressed and nondepressed persons for global self-esteem provided even stronger evidence of self-serving biases among the depressed. Specifically, such analyses revealed that depressed persons' best self-views were even more positive than the best self-views of the nondepressed. A 2nd study replicated these effects and provided tentative evidence that downward comparison processes play a role in the development of depressed persons' positive self-views. The theoretical and therapeutic implications of these findings are discussed.
Pelham
B W
BW
Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles 90024-1563.
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D003674:Defense Mechanisms; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009042:Motivation; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011594:Psychometrics; D012649:Self Concept