The nature of depressive and anxious, intrusive thoughts: Distinct or uniform phenomena?

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Abstract

An investigation into the structure of anxious and depressive thoughts utilizing a self-report instrument was carried out on a large sample of non-psychiatric 5s. Six anxious and six depressive thought statements were rated on scales assessing such cognitive features as frequency, sadness, worry, dismissal and disapproval. Anxious thoughts were rated as more emotionally intense than depressive cognitions. Sex differences were found in the experience of anxious but not depressive thoughts. Emotional intensity and controllability were the most salient features defining both types of cognitions. A second-order factor analysis determined that anxious and depressive thoughts were distinct phenomena. Finally, controllability was a strong predictor of the frequency of anxious and depressive thoughts, while frequency, emotional intensity and—for the anxious cognitions—disapproval, were the most important predictors of the controllability of negative cognitions. The results are discussed in relation to previous research.

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    Present address: Psychology Department, Saint John Regional Hospital, P.O. Box 2100, Saint John, New Brunswick E2L 4L2, Canada.

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