Realism or Distortion in Predicting and Evaluating Exam Performance Among Depressed and Nondepressed Students

Cognitive behavioral theories suggest that depressed people have negatively distorted and inaccurate perceptions and cognitions. The present study measures the accuracy of cognitions by comparing predictions made by depressed and by nondepressed students when they estimate the scores they will earn on an examination. It also compares depressed and nondepressed students on their levels of satisfaction with their exam scores. No difference was found between depressed and nondepressed students in either their predictions of their exam grades or their level of satisfaction with their exam grades. This study fails to support the notion that depression correlates with negative cognitive distortions. Depressed and nondepressed students were alike in their cognitive accuracy in predicting exam grades and in their cognitive satisfaction level with their grades