Me, myself, and I: self-referent word use as an indicator of self-focused attention in relation to depression and anxiety.

Self-focused attention (SFA) is considered a cognitive bias that is closely related to depression. However, it is not yet well understood whether it represents a disorder-specific or a trans-diagnostic phenomenon and which role the valence of a given context is playing in this regard. Computerized quantitative text-analysis offers an integrative psycho-linguistic approach that may help to provide new insights into these complex relationships.

Mood-incongruent processing during the recall of a sad life event predicts the course and severity of depression.

Background: Previous studies suggest that mood-incongruent processing constitutes an adaptive mood regulation strategy, and that difficulties in this process may contribute to the maintenance of depression. However, no study has yet examined whether mood-incongruent processing predicts the course and severity of clinical depression.

Methods: To address this question, the present study used a prospective, longitudinal design to examine the effects of mood-incongruent processing in a sample of 59 clinically depressed patients.

Differentiating early-onset chronic depression from episodic depression in terms of cognitive-behavioral and emotional avoidance.

Background: Although chronic depression is associated with lower global functioning and poorer treatment response than episodic depression, little is known about the differences between these two forms of depression in terms of psychological factors. Thus, the present study aimed at differentiating chronic and episodic depression regarding cognitive-behavioral and emotional avoidance that have been proposed as important risk factors for depression and promising targets for the treatment of depression.

Methods: Thirty patients with early onset chronic depression were compared with 30 patients with episodic depression and 30 healthy, never-depressed controls in terms of self-reported cognitive-behavioral (social and non-social) and emotional avoidance.

Sleep characteristics, sleep problems, and associations of self-efficacy among German university students.

Background: Sleep problems, especially insomnia, are a common complaint among adults. International studies on university students have shown prevalence rates between 4.7% and 36.