Children's Negative Cognitive Triad as a Vulnerability to Depression: Associations with Parents' Depression, Children's Attributions, and Parents' Attributions for Events in the Child's Life
Year: 2011
Type: dissertation
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: This study drew upon Beck's (1967) cognitive theory of depression and the attributional reformulation of the learned helplessness theory (Abramson, Seligman, Teasdale, 1978).Associations were considered between children's negative cognitive triad and each of the following variables: the children's attributional style, parents' depression, and parents' attributions for events in the child's life.Each variable's association with a child's cognitive vulnerability (risk) for depression was evaluated.Data were gathered from children assessing their negative cognitive triad and attributional style, and from parents on their levels of depression and attributions for events in their child's life.Children's cognitive triad was related to children's attributional style, parental depression, and parents' attributions for events in their children's lives.Boys' cognitive triads were inversely related to mothers' depression and positively correlated with both mothers' and fathers' attributions for events in the child's life.Girls' cognitive triads were related to their attributional style and to fathers', but not mothers', attributions for the child's life events.Girls' cognitive triads were not related to either mothers' or fathers' depression.Results, implications, limitations, and future directions are discussed.
Author: Cheryl Egger
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2277915823