Livingstone, Steven
(2008)
The relationship between expectations of positive and negative future events and social support in depressed older adults.
D Clin Psy thesis, University of Glasgow.
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Abstract
Objectives: Within the cognitive model of depression proposed by Beck (1979), it is hypothesised that older depressed participants will differ from controls in reporting less perceived, but not actual, social support. Secondly, if older depressed participants perceive themselves to have less social support than controls, it is hypothesised that they will likewise generate fewer positive future expectancies than controls, as they see themselves as having less to look forward to. Finally, since one is thought to influence the other, it is hypothesised that the generation of positive future expectancies will be correlated with a higher level of perceived social support across both groups. Design: A cross-sectional comparison of older adults with depression and those without depression. Methods: Two groups of participants aged over sixty-five were recruited: (i) those being treated by services for depression (n=25), and (ii) a community control group without depression (n=25). For the purposes of matching the experimental and control groups, demographic questionnaires were completed. Results: The depressed group had significantly lower perceptions of their social support, and significantly fewer positive future expectancies than the control group. Across groups, there was a significant positive correlation between number of positive future expectancies and perceptions of social support, and a significant negative correlation between the number of negative future expectancies and perceptions of social support. This highlights the importance of cognitive distortions and vulnerable social networks.
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