TY - JOUR
T1 - Partner criticism during acute-phase cognitive therapy for recurrent major depressive disorder
AU - Vittengl, Jeffrey R.
AU - Clark, Lee Anna
AU - Thase, Michael E.
AU - Jarrett, Robin B
N1 - Funding Information:
This report was supported by Grants Number K24 MH001571 , R01 MH58397 , R01 MH69619 (to Robin B. Jarrett, Ph.D.) and R01 MH58356 and R01 MH69618 (to Michael E. Thase, M.D.) from the National Institute of Mental Health . The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIMH or the National Institutes of Health. We also appreciate the careful review by members of the trial's Data Safety and Monitoring Board. We are indebted to our research teams and our colleagues at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, the University of Pittsburgh (where Dr. Thase was located during patient accrual), and the University of Pennsylvania (Dr. Thase's current affiliation). We appreciate the participation of colleagues, previously named, and study participants without whom such research could not have been completed.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2018 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2019/2
Y1 - 2019/2
N2 - Many patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) are married or in marriage-like relationships that could influence treatment process and outcomes. We clarified relations of patient-reported criticism from partners (perceived criticism) and criticism of partners with psychosocial functioning and changes in cognitive therapy (CT) for depression. Partnered outpatients (N = 219) received a 12-week CT protocol and completed measures repeatedly. As hypothesized, perceived criticism and criticism of partners correlated with personality (e.g., perceived criticism: trait mistrust, self-harm; criticism of partners: negative temperament, aggression), social-interpersonal problems (perceived criticism: cold and overly nurturant behavior; criticism of partners: vindictive and domineering behavior; both measures: poor adjustment in partnered and family relationships), cognitive content (both measures: negative failure attributions, dysfunctional attitudes), and depressive symptom intensity (both measures), although effect sizes were small-moderate. Both criticism measures decreased little during CT and remained elevated compared to community norms, despite the fact that relations between the criticism measures and depressive symptoms included both stable trait and more transient state components. From these findings, we speculate that some patients with MDD elicit or amplify criticism in ways that harm their relationships and psychosocial functioning and may benefit from additional or strategic treatment.
AB - Many patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) are married or in marriage-like relationships that could influence treatment process and outcomes. We clarified relations of patient-reported criticism from partners (perceived criticism) and criticism of partners with psychosocial functioning and changes in cognitive therapy (CT) for depression. Partnered outpatients (N = 219) received a 12-week CT protocol and completed measures repeatedly. As hypothesized, perceived criticism and criticism of partners correlated with personality (e.g., perceived criticism: trait mistrust, self-harm; criticism of partners: negative temperament, aggression), social-interpersonal problems (perceived criticism: cold and overly nurturant behavior; criticism of partners: vindictive and domineering behavior; both measures: poor adjustment in partnered and family relationships), cognitive content (both measures: negative failure attributions, dysfunctional attitudes), and depressive symptom intensity (both measures), although effect sizes were small-moderate. Both criticism measures decreased little during CT and remained elevated compared to community norms, despite the fact that relations between the criticism measures and depressive symptoms included both stable trait and more transient state components. From these findings, we speculate that some patients with MDD elicit or amplify criticism in ways that harm their relationships and psychosocial functioning and may benefit from additional or strategic treatment.
KW - Cognitive therapy
KW - Criticism of spouse or partner
KW - Depression
KW - Perceived criticism
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U2 - 10.1016/j.brat.2018.12.010
DO - 10.1016/j.brat.2018.12.010
M3 - Article
C2 - 30593975
AN - SCOPUS:85058985093
SN - 0005-7967
VL - 113
SP - 48
EP - 56
JO - Behaviour Research and Therapy
JF - Behaviour Research and Therapy
ER -