Visual perspective and genetics: a commentary on Lemogne and colleagues.
Lemogne and colleagues offer an interesting extension to their previous work on visual perspective and depression: Individuals at-risk for depression (defined as higher scores on Harm Avoidance), without a history of mood disorders, report retrieval of positive memories from the 3rd person perspective. Their findings suggest that the retrieval of positive experiences from the 3rd person perspective may be a risk-factor for depression, not just a lingering consequence of it. Their study, however, also reports a genetic association in a severely underpowered sample. Rather than focusing on gene x environment interactions, which large, well-powered studies on related phenotypes have failed to detect, a greater understanding of the phenomenology of visual perspective may be a more fruitful avenue for future research.
Sutin
Angelina R
AR
Laboratory of Personality and Cognition, National Institute on Aging, NIH, DHHS, 251 Bayview Blvd., Baltimore, MD 21224, USA. sutina@nia.nih.gov
D000339:Affect; D000483:Alleles; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology; D005838:Genotype; D040261:Harm Reduction; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D011939:Mental Recall; D010551:Personality / Q000235:genetics*; D010555:Personality Inventory / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010641:Phenotype; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics*; D011594:Psychometrics / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012307:Risk Factors; D012649:Self Concept; D050486:Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D012931:Social Environment
C493230:SLC6A4 protein, human; D050486:Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins