Concreteness of thinking and self-focus.
The present study used the experience sampling method to detect fluctuations in thinking, such as self-focus or concreteness in daily life, and to examine their relationship with depressive symptoms and concurrent negative affect. Thirty-one undergraduates recorded their negative affect, ruminative self-focus, and concreteness of thinking eight times a day for 1 week. Multilevel modeling showed that individuals with increasing levels of depression showed lower levels of concreteness in their daily thinking. Further analysis revealed a significant positive association between momentary ruminative self-focus and concurrent negative affect only with low concreteness of thinking. These results suggested that individuals with increasing levels of depression chronically process self-related information on an abstract level, which reflects a malfunction of their self-regulatory cycle and might serve to maintain or even exacerbate dysphoric moods.
Takano
Keisuke
K
Department of Cognitive and Behavioral Science, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Meguro-ku, Tokyo, Japan. takano@beck.c.u-tokyo.ac.jp
Tanno
Yoshihiko
Y
D000339:Affect; D001288:Attention; D002940:Circadian Rhythm; D003243:Consciousness; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008016:Life Change Events; D008297:Male; D008960:Models, Psychological; D018670:Monitoring, Ambulatory; D010555:Personality Inventory; D012649:Self Concept; D012938:Social Perception; D013850:Thinking