Rumin8

New Study on Rumination in Illness

2011-08-09T02:34:00.000-07:00

This study looks at how the way that we tend to think a lot about certain things might influence our thoughts and behaviours that relate to acute illness, represented by cancer, and chronic illness, represented by diabetes . Increasing our understanding of how people think in response to illness may help identify individuals who may experience difficulties in adjusting to illness and also guide us in developing ways to help you overcome these difficulties.

Study now open to international participants. Please consider taking part. Click on the link below.

For more information on the study or the Multi-Dimensional Rumination in Illness Scale used in this study, please visit Thinking Style in Illness

Rumination, post-traumatic growth and distress: Structural equation modelling with cancer survivors

2011-03-18T21:27:00.000-07:00

Abstract

Objective: Theoretical models of post-traumatic growth (PTG) have been derived in the general trauma literature to describe the post-trauma experience that facilitates the perception of positive life changes. To develop a statistical model identifying factors that are associated with PTG, structural equation modelling (SEM) was used in the current study to assess the relationships between perception of diagnosis severity, rumination, social support, distress, and PTG.
Method: A statistical model of PTG was tested in a sample of participants diagnosed with a variety of cancers (N5313).
Results: An initial principal components analysis of the measure used to assess rumination revealed three components: intrusive rumination, deliberate rumination of benefits, and life purpose rumination. SEM results indicated that the model fit the data well and that 30% of the variance in PTG was explained by the variables. Trauma severity was directly related to distress, but not to PTG. Deliberately ruminating on benefits and social support were directly related to PTG. Life purpose rumination and intrusive rumination were associated with distress.
Conclusions: The model showed that in addition to having unique correlating factors, distress was not related to PTG, thereby providing support for the notion that these are discrete constructs in the post-diagnosis experience. The statistical model provides support that postdiagnosis experience is simultaneously shaped by positive and negative life changes and that one or the other outcome may be prevalent or may occur concurrently. As such, an implication for practice is the need for supportive care that is holistic in nature.

Morris, B. A., & Shakespeare-Finch, J. (2010). Rumination, post-traumatic growth and distress: Structural equation modelling with cancer survivors. [Electronic version]. Psycho-Oncology.

Rumin8ing on this blog

2011-03-17T23:46:00.000-07:00

Good intentions and all that......I've been sidetracked by my own research in rumination. I am now in the process of writing up both the pilot and validation studies for a newly developed scale for measuring rumination in illness, The Multidimensional Rumination in Illness Scale (MRIS) and also in the process of implementing a study looking again at rumination in the context of illness.

That said, I hope to be adding more rumination resources in spare moments and again would be very happy to receive any suggestions of useful links. Please send to rumin8erATgmail.com....and, if you're reading this? Thanks for stopping by.

Construal level, rumination and psychological distress in palliative care

2011-03-15T16:26:00.000-07:00

Abstract

Background Patients with a life-limiting illness, such as cancer, and their carers experience elevated psychological distress. However, the psychological mechanisms underpinning psychological distress in palliative care have been little studied. Recent theories predict that individuals who experience increased uncertainty in the contexdt of ongoing difficulties, such as palliative-care patients and their carers, will (a) think more abstractly; (b) ruminate more; and (c) be more distressed.

Methods Patients (n=36, 90% with cancer), their carers (n=29), and age-matched controls (n = 30) completed standardized questionnaires to assess anxiety, depression, and rumination, and open-ended interviews to identify their concerns and idiosyncratic levels of rumination. Concerns were analyzed linguistically for level of abstraction.

Results As predicted, (i) palliative patients and carers reported significantly more uncertainty, rumination, and abstract thinking than controls; (ii) uncertainty, abstractedness, and rumination were associated with psychological distress.

Conclusions Abstraction and rumination are psychological mechanisms potentially involved in increased psychological distress in palliative care.

Galfin, J. M., & Watkins, E. R. (2011). Construal level, rumination and psychological distress in palliative care. [Electronic version]. Psycho-Oncology.

Trait-impulsivity moderates the relationship between rumination and number of major depressive episodes among cigarette smokers

2011-03-14T01:13:00.000-07:00

Abstract

Background Despite the high prevalence of major depression among cigarette smokers, little is known about biobehavioural mechanisms that increase smoker's susceptibility to depression.

Aims The present study examined whether trait-impulsivity would moderate the relationship between rumination and number of past major depressive episodes (MDEs) among smokers (N=128).

Method Data were derived from baseline screening questionnaires and structured diagnostic interviews of two studies examining emotional responses of smokers with a history of major depression compared with smokers without depression histories.

Results As predicted, the interaction betwen rumination and trait-impulsivity was a significant predictor of MDE recurrence (beta= 0.408, p = .oo6, R2 change = 0.104) but not among those with low levels of impuslivity (beta = 0.203, p = 0.126, R2 change = 0.028).

Conclusions High levels of trait-impulsivity may increase vulnerability to rumination and MDE recurrence among smokers, potentially facilitating the likelihood of experiencing clinically revelant depressogenic consequences (e.g. suicidal ideation and behaviour).

McChargue, D. E., Drevo, S., Herrera, M. J., Doran, N., Salvi, S., & Klanecy, A. K. (2011). trait-impulsivity moderates the relationship between rumination and number of major depressive episodes among cigarette smokers, Mental Health and Substamce Use, 4, 96-104.

Research study, participants needed

2010-03-18T22:34:00.000-07:00

Rumination and Informational Preferences in Psychological and Behavioural Outcomes in Illness: Reliability and validity testing of the Multidimensional Rumination in Illness Scale (MRIS)

This project is part of a research program that examines the role of ruminative thinking in psychological and behavioural outcomes in illness. In looking at the way in which thinking style influences a person’s emotional and behavioural response to illness, it is hoped to provide a way of identifying individuals who may experience difficulties in adjusting to illness and also guide the development of appropriate interventions.

This stage of the project involves validation and reliability testing of the newly-developed Multidimensional Rumination in Illness Scale (MRIS).

For this project, I am seeking English-speaking people who are over 18. Participation involves the completion of an on-line questionnaire, which will take approximately 30 minutes.

This study has been approved by the Macquarie University Ethics Review Committee (Human Subjects).

If this project is of interest to you, please go to the following website to start the questionnaire:

Thinking Style in Illness

Maladaptive perfectionism, depression and rumination

2010-03-06T22:30:00.001-08:00

Harris, P. W., Pepper, C. M., & Maack, D. J. (2008). The relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and depressive symptoms: The mediating role of rumination. Personality and Individual Differences,44, 150–160.

Abstract

Maladaptive perfectionism is associated with both rumination and depressive symptoms (Frost, Marten, Lahart, & Rosenblate, 1990). In the current study we tested whether rumination, as well as the rumination components of reflective pondering and brooding, mediates the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and depressive symptoms. College students (N = 96) completed the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale-Frost (Frost et al., 1990) and retrospectively reported levels of rumination on the Response Styles Questionnaire (Nolen-Hoeksema, 1991) and depressive symptoms on the Beck Depression Inventory II (Beck, Steer, & Brown, 1996) following a disappointing exam. Consistent with our model, rumination mediated the relationship between maladaptive perfectionism and depressive symptoms. Brooding, a component of rumination, also mediated this relationship whereas reflective pondering was a partial mediator. Results support a model whereby students who score high on maladaptive perfectionism report higher depressive symptoms through a mechanism of rumination.

Adaptive and maladaptive rumination

2010-03-06T22:04:00.000-08:00

Joormann, J., Dkane, M., & Gotlib, I. H. (2006). Adaptive and maladaptive components of rumination? Diagnostic specificity and relation to depressive biases. Behavior Therapy, 37, 269–280.

Abstract

The present study investigated the validity of the two-factor solution of items selected from the Rumination Scale of the Response Style Questionnaire proposed by Treynor, Gonzalez, and Nolen-Hoeksema (2003). In the first part of this study we used samples of currently depressed (MDD), formerly depressed (FD), socially anxious (SP), and healthy control participants to examine whether the brooding and reflective pondering components differentiate participants with an anxiety disorder from participants with depression. In the second part of this study we examined whether these components of rumination were differentially related to cognitive biases in depression. Overall, the MDD group exhibited higher brooding scores than did all other groups; SP and FD groups did not differ from each other but obtained higher brooding scores than did the control participants. Only the MDD and the control groups differed on the reflective pondering factor. Importantly, brooding and reflective pondering were differentially related to cognitive biases. Specifically, the correlation between brooding/reflective pondering and memory bias was not significant when depressive symptoms were partialed out. The correlation between brooding and attentional bias for sad faces, however, remained significant even when current depressive symptoms were taken into account. In sum, our results support the formulation that rumination is composed of an adaptive reflective pondering factor and a maladaptive brooding factor.

Rumination and distraction

2010-03-06T21:35:00.000-08:00

Trask, P. C., & Sigmon, S. T. (1999). Ruminating and distracting: The effects of sequential tasks on depressed mood. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 23, 231-246.

Abstract

Response styles theory (Nolen-Hoeksema, 1987) provided the impetus for recent research efforts investigating the effects of rumination and distraction on depressed mood. This study elaborates on previous research by examining the sequential effects of engaging in ruminating and distracting tasks. Results from two studies indicated that initially engaging in a ruminating task maintained postinduction levels of dysphoric mood, whereas initially engaging in a distracting task reduced levels of dysphoric mood. More important, however, were the effects of task order on mood. When particip ants engaged in a distracting task following a ruminating task, dysphoric mood, which had been maintained with a ruminating task, was reduced to premoodinduction levels. Of equal importance, individuals who ruminated after distracting maintained their current mood and did not report an increase in depressed mood. In the second study, engaging in sequential rumination tasks further prolonged depressed mood, whereas engaging in sequential distraction tasks reduced depressed mood. The results suggest that, although engaging in a rumination task maintains depressed mood and engaging in a distraction task reduces it, the order in which these tasks are performed is also important. The implications of these results for response styles theory are discussed.

Rumination, adolescents and depression

2010-03-06T20:54:00.000-08:00

Kuyken, W., Watkins, E., Holden,E., & Cook, W. (2006). Rumination in adolescents at risk for depression. Journal of Affective Disorders, 96, 39-47.

Abstract

Background: Identifying high-risk adolescents and understanding first onset of depression in adolescence are important steps in reducing depression morbidity. There is compelling evidence that the personality dimension neuroticism is a risk factor for depression, but the vulnerability mechanism is not yet understood. This study examined the association between a hypothesized psychological vulnerability factor (rumination) and depression in adolescents.
Methods: A behavioural high-risk design differentiated a sample of 326 adolescents (aged 14–18) as either at normal or high risk for depression (operationalized as scores on a measure of neuroticism).
Results: Adolescents at risk for depression reported more rumination than adolescents not at risk. We hypothesized that the well established relationship between neuroticism and depression would be mediated by rumination in cross-sectional analyses, and our findings suggest that rumination partially mediated this relationship.
Conclusions: The findings tentatively suggest that neuroticism acts as a risk factor for adolescent onset depression through increased tendency towards brooding rumination (i.e. moody self-evaluative dwelling) in response to depressed mood. Prospective and experimental research examining this mechanism is required.

Rumination and memory

2010-03-06T20:18:00.000-08:00

Moulds, M. L., Kandris, E.,& Williams, A. D. (2007). The impact of rumination on memory for self-referent material. Memory, 15, 814-821.

Abstract

Previous findings have linked rumination to the enhanced retrieval of negative memories (Lyubormirsky, Caldwell, & Nolen-Hoeksema, 1998) and overgeneral autobiographical memories (Watkins & Teasdale, 2004) in depression. However, little is known of the impact of rumination on the encoding of information, and in particular, self-referent information. This study examined the impact of rumination on selfreferent encoding in high (BDI-II]13) and low (BDI-II55) dysphoric participants. Participants were randomly allocated to a rumination or distraction condition, and then completed the experimental task in which they rated a series of adjectives (positive, negative) as either self- or other-descriptive, and later received a memory test for the adjectives. Not surprisingly, high-dysphoric participants endorsed more negative and less positive adjectives as self-descriptive. Counter to our prediction, high-dysphoric participants allocated to the rumination condition did not endorse more negative adjectives as selfreferent. However, consistent with our hypothesis, high-dysphoric participants who ruminated recalled more negative self-referent words, after controlling for the proportion of words endorsed as selfdescriptive. The findings demonstrate that rumination results in enhanced memory for negative, selfrelated material, and raises the possibility that this may serve as another pathway via which the negative evaluations of the self observed clinically in depression are maintained.

Worry versus rumination

2010-03-06T19:57:00.000-08:00

Hong, R. Y. (2007). Worry and rumination: Differential associations with anxious and depressive symptoms and coping behavior. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 45, 277–290.

Abstract

Worry and rumination are closely allied cognitive processes that impact on the experience of anxious and depressive symptoms. Using a prospective design, this study examined overlapping and distinct features of worry and rumination in relation to symptoms and coping behavior in a nonclinical sample of Singaporean college students. Worry and rumination were highly correlated, but they retained distinct components that predicted anxious and depressive symptoms differentially within and across time. Specifically, worry was uniquely associated with anxious and depressive symptoms whereas rumination was uniquely related to depression. In comparison to rumination, worry emerged as the dominant cognitive vulnerability factor that predicted increments in symptoms over time. With regards to coping behavior, low perceived coping effectiveness partially mediated the relation between worry and increases in anxiety and depression. Conversely, rumination uniquely predicted higher disengagement from problems, which resulted in further exacerbation of depressive mood. These results demonstrated not only the distinct features of worry and rumination on coping behavior, but also the different coping pathways by which they differentially impact on subsequent symptoms.

Rumination and alcohol-aggression expectancies

2010-03-06T16:55:00.000-08:00

Borders, A., Barnwell, S. S., & Earleywine, M. (2007). Alcohol-aggression expectancies and dispositional rumination moderate the effect of alcohol consumption on alcohol-related aggression and hostility. Aggressive Behavior, 33, 327−338.

Abstract

Alcohol consumption increases aggression, but only in some drinkers. This study extends previous work to show how expectancies for alcohol-induced aggression and dispositional rumination moderate the link between alcohol consumption and alcohol-related aggression and hostility in a sample of 285 men and women. Alcohol-aggression expectancies and quantity of alcohol interacted to predict alcohol-related hostility and aggression. Trait rumination moderated the effect of alcohol consumption on aggressive acts. Finally, women who ruminated were more likely to report alcohol-related aggression than were men who ruminated. These results suggest that alcohol expectancies for aggression and rumination constitute two important cognitive facilitators of alcohol-related aggression and hostility, and that gender plays an important role in these relations.

Rumination and sleep

2010-02-28T20:33:00.000-08:00

Carney, C. E., Edinger, J. E., Meyer, B., Lindman, L., & Istre, T. (2006). Symptom-focused rumination and sleep disturbance. Behavioral Sleep Medicine, 4, 228-241.

Abstract

Rumination can prolong negative mood, disrupt sleep, and increase depression risk. Although there is evidence that poor sleepers ruminate, no studies have identified the ruminative content relevant for sleep disturbance. This study investigated (a) the association between rumination and sleep and (b) the ruminative content of poor sleepers. Results revealed that self-defined poor sleepers (n = 104) were more prone than self-defined good sleepers (n = 139) to ruminate and that the ruminative content was symptom focused (e.g., poor sleepers ruminated on causes of dysphoria, concentration, and fatigue symptoms). As dysphoria, reduced concentration, and fatigue are all commonly experienced daytime symptoms of insomnia, this preliminary finding of symptom-focused rumination should be further evaluated as a risk factor for further sleep disturbance in clinical samples as well as a possible link between insomnia and depression

Rumination:Problem-solving gone wrong

2010-02-24T23:03:00.000-08:00

Rumination as a problem-solving strategy gone wrong. General article in Psychology Today.

Stress-reactive rumination

2010-02-23T21:50:00.000-08:00

Robinson, M. S., & Alloy, L. B. (2003). Negative cognitive styles and stress-reactive rumination interact to predict depression: A prospective study. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 27, 275-291.

Abstract

Research on cognitive theories of depression has identified negative cognitive styles and rumination in response to depressed mood as risk factors for depressive episodes. In addition, a general self-focusing style has been suggested to increase vulnerability to depression. The present study used a behavioral high-risk paradigm to test whether the interaction of negative cognitive styles and rumination predicted the prospective onset, number, and duration of depressive episodes in a sample of 148 initially nondepressed undergraduates over a 2.5-year follow-up. In addition, rumination was assessed specifically as the tendency to focus on maladaptive self-referential thoughts following stressful events (stress-reactive rumination; SRR). The principal hypotheses tested were (1) the interaction of negative cognitive styles and SRR increases risk for developing depressive episodes as well as longer duration depressive episodes; and (2) this interaction would not be obtained when a trait measure of general self-focus or a measure of rumination in response to depressed mood is used instead of the measure of SRR. After controlling for subsyndromal depressive symptoms and the main effects of negative cognitive styles and SRR, the interaction of negative cognitive styles and SRR was found to predict the prospective onset, number, and duration of major depressive and hopelessness depressive episodes. These interactions were not obtained when other measures of trait self-focus and depressive rumination were used instead of SRR.

Rumination in affective outcomes in chronic illness

2010-02-03T16:53:00.000-08:00

Soo, H., Burney, S., & Basten, C,. (2009). The role of rumination in affective distress in people with a chronic physical illness: A review of the literature and theoretical formulation. Journal of Health Psychology, 14, 956 - 966.

Abstract

The role of maladaptive cognitive content among individuals with chronic physical illness has been acknowledged in cognitive models. Rumination has been documented as a key predictor of depression, and to a lesser extent of anxiety, in non-clinical samples. This paper provides a preliminary discussion of the potential role of rumination as a causal and maintaining factor for emotional distress in the setting of chronic physical illness. Although a number of methodological limitations exist, the current research on rumination may provide a useful framework for the extension of existing cognitive models in chronic illness.

A roadmap to rumination

2010-01-29T20:01:00.000-08:00

Smith, J. M., & Alloy, L. B. (2009). A roadmap to rumination: A review of the definition, assessment, and conceptualization of this multifaceted construct. Clinical Psychology Review, 29, 116–128.

Abstract

Rumination has been widely studied and is a crucial component in the study of cognitive vulnerabilities to depression. However, rumination means different things in the context of different theories, and has not been uniformly defined or measured. This article aims to review models of rumination, as well as the various ways in which it is assessed. The models are compared and contrasted with respect to several important dimensions of rumination. Guidelines to consider in the selection of a model and measure of rumination are presented, and suggestions for the conceptualization of rumination are offered. In addition, rumination's relation to other similar constructs is evaluated. Finally, future directions for the study of ruminative phenomena are presented. It is hoped that this article will be a useful guide to those interested in studying the multifaceted construct of rumination.

Rumination in emotional regulation

2010-01-29T19:19:00.000-08:00

Aldao, A., Nolen-Hoeksema, S., & Schweizer, S. (2010). Emotion-regulation strategies across psychopathology: A meta-analytic review. Clinical Psychology Review, 30, 217–237.

Abstract

We examined the relationships between six emotion-regulation strategies (acceptance, avoidance, problem solving, reappraisal, rumination, and suppression) and symptoms of four psychopathologies (anxiety, depression, eating, and substance-related disorders). We combined 241 effect sizes from 114 studies that examined the relationships between dispositional emotion regulation and psychopathology. We focused on dispositional emotion regulation in order to assess patterns of responding to emotion over time. First, we examined the relationship between each regulatory strategy and psychopathology across the four disorders. We found a large effect size for rumination, medium to large for avoidance, problem solving, and suppression, and small to medium for reappraisal and acceptance. These results are surprising, given the prominence of reappraisal and acceptance in treatment models, such as cognitive-behavioral therapy and acceptance-based treatments, respectively. Second, we examined the relationship between each regulatory strategy and each of the four psychopathology groups. We found that internalizing disorders were more consistently associated with regulatory strategies than externalizing disorders. Lastly, many of our analyses showed that whether the sample came from a clinical or normative population significantly moderated the relationships. This finding underscores the importance of adopting a multi-sample approach to the study of psychopathology.

Ruminative Responses Scale (RRS)

2010-01-23T22:16:00.001-08:00

Subscale of the Response Styles Questionnaire (RSQ; Nolen-Hoeksema & Morrow, 1991)

22 items that address how often participants engage in responses to feeling sad or depressed.

Assesses responses that:

are self-focused (“Why do I have problems that other people don't have?”)
have a symptom focus (“Think about your feelings of fatigue and achiness”)
are focused on the causes or consequences of having a depressed mood (“I won’t be able to do my job if I don’t snap out of this”).

Four point Likert scale with anchors of 1 = ‘Never’ to 4 = ‘Always’.

The RRS has been extensively used and has been shown to have good internal consistency (Cronbach’s a = .82), moderate to high test-retest reliability over 1 year (r = 0.47, p < .001) and validity for predicting depression (Just & Alloy, 1997; Kuehner & Weber, 1999; Nolan, Roberts, & Gotlib, 1998; Nolen-Hoeksema et al., 1994; Nolen-Hoeksema, 2000; Spasojevic & Alloy, 2001). Items forming the RRS can be found in the following paper which address concerns regarding overlap of items with measures of depression. Treynor, W., Gonzalez, R., & Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (2003). Rumination reconsidered: A psychometric analysis. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 27, 247-259. Please remember to request permission from Professor Nolen-Hoeksema before using the scale in your research.

References

Just, N., & Alloy, L. B. (1997). The response styles theory of depression: Tests and an extension of the theory. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 106, 221-229.

Kuehner, C., & Weber, I. (1999). Responses to depression in unipolar depressed patients: An investigation of Nolen-Hoeksema's response styles theory. Psychological Medicine, 29, 1323-1333.

Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (2000). The role of rumination in depressive disorders and mixed anxiety/depressive symptoms. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 109, 504-511

Nolen-Hoeksema, S., Parker, L. E., & Larson, J. (1994). Ruminative coping with depressed mood following loss. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67, 92-104

Nolan, S. A., Roberts, J. E., & Gotlib, H. (1998). Neuroticism and ruminative response style as predictors of change in depressive symptomatology. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 22, 445-455.

Nolen-Hoeksema, S., & Morrow, J. (1991). A prospective study of depression and posttraumatic stress symptoms after a natural disaster: The 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 61, 115-121.

Spasojevic, J., & Alloy, L. B. (2001). Rumination as a common mechanism relating depressive risk factors to depression. Emotion, 1, 25-37.

Rumination psychometrics

2010-01-17T21:19:00.000-08:00

Armey, M. F., Fresco, D. M., Moore, M. T., Mennin, D. S., Turk, C. L., Heimberg, R. G., Kecmanovic, J., & Alloy, L. B. (2009). Brooding and pondering: Isolating the active ingredients of depressive rumination with exploratory factor analysis and structural equation modeling. Assessment, 16, 315-327.

Abstract

Depressive rumination, as assessed by Nolen-Hoeksema's Response Styles Questionnaire (RSQ), predicts the onset, chronicity, and duration of depressed mood. However, some RSQ items contain depressive content and result in a heterogeneous factor structure. After the a priori elimination of items potentially confounded with depressed item content, Treynor, Gonzalez, and Nolen-Hoeksema identified two factors within the remaining RSQ rumination sub-scale that were differentially related to depression: brooding and pondering. However, Treynor et al. used a nonstandard form and administration of the RSQ. The present study sought to address these methodological idiosyncrasies and replicate the factor structure of Treynor et al. through exploratory factor analysis and structural equation modeling. Findings support the brooding and pondering solution and demonstrate that brooding relates more strongly to depression and anxiety than does pondering.

Ruminative thoughts

2010-01-16T20:19:00.001-08:00

Wyer, R. E. (Ed.) (1996). Ruminative thoughts. Advances in Social Cognition Volume IX. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Preview here.

Chapters:

1. Some ruminative thoughts (Abraham & Tesser)

2. Goal engagement and the ruminative experience (Carver)

3. Restructuring and realigning mental models: Ruminations as guides to cognitive home repair (Clark)

4. Ruminations on the rebound (Erber & Wegner)

5. Some thoughts about thinking (Gohm, Isbell, & Wyer)

6. Thinking about goals, glue and the meaning of life (King & Pennebaker)

7. Theories of thought flow : Points of kinship and fertile contrasts (Klinger)

8. Attention inhibition: Does it underlie ruminative thought? (Linville)

9. Chewing the cud and other ruminations (Nolen-Hoeksema)

10. Recurrent thought: Implications forattitudes and persuasion (Petty, Jarvis, & Evans)

11. When do unconscious goals cloud our minds? (Uleman)

12. Rumination: When all else fails (Waenke & Schmid)

13. Clarifying our thoughts (Martin & Tesser)

Rumination, Negative Cognition, Depressed Mood

2010-01-16T18:53:00.001-08:00

Rumination, negative cognition and their interactive effects on depressed mood.

Ciesla, J. A., & Roberts, J. E. (2007). Rumination, negative cognition and their interactive effects on depressed mood. Emotion, 7, 555-565.

Abstract

Response styles theory posits that rumination represents a trait vulnerability to depression. Recent evidence has suggested that rumination predicts changes in depression more strongly among individuals with high levels of negative cognition. Three studies evaluated this model of interactive vulnerabilities. Study 1 provided empirical support for the distinction between rumination and negative cognitive content. The next 2 studies investigated the interactive model in the laboratory. Study 2 randomly assigned participants to either ruminate or distract following a sad mood induction. This study found that rumination was more strongly associated with dysphoria among individuals who report high levels of negative cognition. Similarly, Study 3 found that rumination and negative cognition interact to predict changes in dysphoria across a no-task delay period following a sad mood induction. These studies provide support for an interactive model in which rumination amplifies the deleterious effects of negative cognition.

A copy of the full article can be found here.

Chewing the cud and other ruminations

2010-01-16T18:03:00.000-08:00

While rumination is often seen as goal-orientated and instrumental, Susan Nolen-Hoeksema discusses rumination as a maladaptive process, differentiating it from the problem-solving process proposed by others such as Martin and Tesser.

Key elements include:

Rumination versus problem-solving
Rumination and mood
Rumination and current theories

Martin, L. L., & Tesser, A. (1996). Some ruminative thoughts. In R. S. Wyer (Ed.) Advances in social cognition (Vol. IX) (pp. 3-47). USA: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Preview available here.

Some Ruminative Thoughts

2010-01-16T16:52:00.000-08:00

A chapter by key rumination researchers Leonard Martin and Abraham Tesser, outlining key elements of rumination with a goal-focused orientation.

Key sections:

Common features of rumination
Modes of ruminative thought
The mechanics of rumination (discrepancies in goal progress, controlling rumination)
Additional considerations (role in affect, individual differences)
Theory of rumination review

Martin, L. L., & Tesser, A. (1996). Some ruminative thoughts. In R. S. Wyer (Ed.) Advances in social cognition (Vol. IX) (pp. 3-47). USA: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Preview available here.

Rumination Reconsidered

2010-01-06T15:36:00.000-08:00

Re-visiting the Ruminative Response Styles Questionnaire.

Treynor, W., Gonzalez. R., Nolen-Hoeksema, S. (2003). Rumination reconsidered: A psychometric analysis. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 27, 247–259. Link to full article here.

Abstract

In an attempt to eliminate similar item content as an alternative explanation for the relation between depression and rumination, a secondary analysis was conducted using the data from S. Nolen-Hoeksema, J. Larson, and C. Grayson (1999). After constructing a measure of rumination unconfounded with depression content, support for a two factor model of rumination was found. These analyses indicate that the 2 components, reflective pondering and brooding, differentially relate to depression in terms of predictive ability and gender difference mediation. The results presented here support the general premise of Nolen-Hoeksema’s Response Styles Theory (S. Nolen-Hoeksema 1987) that rumination can contribute to more depressive symptoms and to the gender difference in depression, but suggest important refinements of the theory. Such refinements include the need to differentiate between the reflective pondering component of rumination and the brooding component in rumination research.

Rumination measures

2010-01-04T22:05:00.001-08:00

An investigation of the extent to which differing definitions of rumination represent a single construct.

Siegle, G. J., Steinhauer, S. R., Carter, C. S., & Thase, M. E. 'Convergence and Divergence in Rumination Measures'

Presentation to the Association for the Advancement of Behavior Therapy, New Orleans, November 18, 2000

Abstract

Rumination has been associated with increased vulnerability to, maintenance of, and delays in recovery from depression. Yet, different researchers define rumination differently. A number of experiments were conducted to examine the extent to which these definitions represent a single construct and thus, the extent to which they are associated with aspects of depression. First, seven rumination scales were administered to 189 undergraduates. Generalizability analysis suggested that the scales were not responded to consistently by participants, though each scale had adequate internal consistency. Follow-up examinations suggested that while the scales overlap to some extent they measure different dimensions of rumination. The second study involved giving the same measures to depressed and never-depressed individuals during information processing tasks designed to provoke sustained processing of emotional information. Reaction times, pupil dilation (a correlate of cognitive load) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) were used to assess sustained brain activity during the tasks. Scores on many of the administered rumination scales were highly correlated with reaction time biases, sustained pupil dilation to negative information, and sustained amygdala activation. Results suggest that while measures of rumination may tap different phenomena, they have similar physiological correlates.

Assessment and Measurement of Depressive Rumination

2010-01-03T18:07:00.001-08:00

“Reflection” by François Texier, Google image search 'Rumination'

'Assessment and Measurement of Depressive Rumination' by Olivier Luminet, from the book Depressive Rumination by Papageorgiou and Wells.

The Rumination Rut

2010-01-01T22:57:00.001-08:00

An older article (2003) for general reading in Psychology Today, The Rumination Rut, provides a brief explanation of rumination and its role in depression. It touches briefly on the work by Susan Nolen-Hoeksema on gender differences in rumination and depression. It also suggests how to identify tendencies to rumination and strategies for breaking the rumination cycle.

Depression's Evolutionary Roots

2009-12-31T22:00:00.000-08:00

An article by Paul W. Andrews and J. Anderson Thomson Jr. in the current (Jan 2010) edition of Scientific American Mind suggesting rumination as beneficial in ending depressive episodes.
Key concepts

The brain’s ability to enter a depressed state has been preserved throughout evolution, suggesting that depression is an adaptation.

Depression promotes focused rumination about problems. People in this state of mind are better at solving complex social dilemmas.

Effective therapies encourage patients to engage in rumination, allowing them to find solutions to their problems and end their depressive episode.

Unfortunately PPV if you can't access it otherwise but you can read a preview here.

Flies in the face of some pretty substantial work suggesting otherwise. Thoughts anyone?

Rumination Resources

2009-12-31T21:04:00.000-08:00

Depressive Rumination is a comprehensive resource on the process of rumination in depression. Edited by Costas Papageorgiou and Adrian Wells, leading researchers in this field outline the nature, effects, measurement and treatment of rumination.

Chapters include:

Nature, functions and beliefs about depressive rumination (Papageorgiou & Wells)

The consequences of dysphoric rumination (Lyubomirsky and Tkach)

Reactive rumination: Outcomes, mechanisms and developmental antecedents (Spasojevic, Alloy, Abramson, MacCoon, & Robinson)

Mental control and depressive rumination (Wenzlaff)

Physiological aspects of depressive rumination (Siegle & Thayer)

The Response Styles Theory (Nolen-Hoeksema)

Rumination, depression and metacognition in the S-REF model (Matthews & Wells)

Rumination as a function of goal progress, stop rules and cerebral lateralization (Martin, Shirara, & Startup)

A comparison and appraisal of theories of rumination (Brotman & DeRubeis)

Measurement of depressive rumination and associated constructs (Luminet)

Psychological treatment of rumination (Purdon)

Cognitive therapy for depressive thinking (McMillan & Fisher)

Metacognitive therapy for depressive rumination (Wells & Papageorgiou)

Essential reading for anyone interested in rumination.

Paperback: 296 pages
Publisher: Wiley (December 2, 2003)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0471486930
ISBN-13: 978-0471486930