Vulnerability to depression: Cognitive reactivity and parental bonding in high-risk individuals

Although various conceptual proposals have suggested that disruptions in childhood bonding processes may be linked to the origins of these cognitive structures, little research as tested these proposals. This study assessed the information processing of vulnerable individuals and its relationship to childhood bonding. Formerly depressed (vulnerable) and never depressed (nonvulnerable) individuals participated in a mood induction task followed by an attentional llocation task. Results indicated that vulnerable individuals uniquely diverted attention toward negative stimuli when they were in a negative mood. Furthermore, level of maternal caring was found to be associated with performance on this task for vulnerable individuals in this mood state. These data support he idea that cognitive variables form a pathway between troublesome parental-child/adolescent interactions and depression. Diathesis-stress models of depression suggest hat depresso-genic cognitive structures are dormant until activated by stressfu