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Depression, Nondepression, and Social Comparison Biases

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Social Processes in Clinical and Counseling Psychology

Abstract

Throughout history, depression has been characterized as a turning against the self in which the depressed individual becomes preoccupied with the negative aspects of his or her character and experiences (Musson & Alloy, in press). Friends and family of depressed persons often experience the tenacity of the depressive’s negative self-concept firsthand when they attempt unsuccessfully to dissuade the depressive from negative evaluations of his or her appearance, accomplishments, and worth in general. These negative self-evaluations have been recognized by many theorists from diverse schools of thought to be critical features of depression. For example, according to Beck’s cognitive model of depression (Beck, 1967, 1976), negative perceptions of the self are core symptoms and causes of depression. Beck argued that depressives have a “systematic bias against the self’ that results from specific logical errors in interpreting reality. Similarly, psychoanalysts have emphasized low self-esteem (e.g., Bibring, 1953; Fenichel, 1945; Freud, 1917/1957) as the feature that distinguishes depression from grief. From a behavioral perspective (e.g., Bandura, 1977; Rehm, 1977), unrealistic personal standards and inadequate self-reinforcement have been implicated in depressive negative self-concept. Also, Lewinsohn (1974) argued that depressives lack the necessary social skills for obtaining reinforcement, which may result in negative self-perceptions.

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Authors
  1. Lauren B. Alloy
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  2. Jeanne S. Albright
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  3. Caroline M. Clements
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, George Mason University, 22030, Fairfax, Virginia, USA

    James E. Maddux

  2. Department of Educational Psychology, University of Oklahoma, 73019, Norman, Oklahoma, USA

    Cal D. Stoltenberg

  3. Social Relations Department, Lehigh University, 18015, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, USA

    Robert Rosenwein

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Alloy, L.B., Albright, J.S., Clements, C.M. (1987). Depression, Nondepression, and Social Comparison Biases. In: Maddux, J.E., Stoltenberg, C.D., Rosenwein, R. (eds) Social Processes in Clinical and Counseling Psychology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-8728-2_8

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