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Social cognitive complexity and depression: cognitive complexity moderates the correlation between depression
Michael A Gara1, Robert L Woolfolk, Lesley A Allen
1University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Department of Psychiatry, 671 Hoes Lane, Piscataway, New Jersey, 08855-1392, USA.
The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease
|November 1, 2002
Summary
This study validates a method for measuring social cognitive complexity. Higher complexity in thinking about self and others correlates with lower depression, especially when self-evaluation is considered.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Social Psychology
- Cognitive Psychology
Background:
- Assessing individual differences in social cognition is crucial.
- Understanding the structure of cognitions about self and others is key to psychological well-being.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the psychometric properties of a new data-collection method for social cognitive complexity.
- To examine the relationship between social cognitive complexity and psychological variables like depression.
Main Methods:
- A standardized data-collection method was used to assess social cognitive complexity.
- 437 college undergraduates completed measures of social cognitive complexity, depression, self-deception, impression management, self-esteem, and affectivity.
Main Results:
- The social cognitive complexity measure demonstrated internal consistency, concurrent validity, and discriminant validity.
- Greater complexity in cognitions about self and others was linked to higher depression, even after controlling for impression management.
- Social cognitive complexity moderated the relationship between global self-evaluation and depression, with a stronger link in less complex individuals.
Conclusions:
- The developed method is a reliable and valid tool for assessing social cognitive complexity.
- Social cognitive complexity plays a significant role in understanding depression and self-evaluation dynamics.