Perceived cognitive loss, symptomology, and psychological well-being with bipolar disorder

Adults with bipolar disorder (BD) commonly present with cognitive deficits. Many also report subjective or perceived cognitive failures. For this study, we identified four distinct clusters of adults with BD on the basis of both BD symptoms (depression and hypo/mania) and perceived cognitive errors (i.e., forgetfulness, distractibility, false triggering). We hypothesized that participants reporting more BD symptoms and cognitive errors would report lower psychological well-being (i.e., self-efficacy, life scheme, life satisfaction). A second objective was to determine if and how clusters differed in terms of BD related factors (e.g., subtypes, sleep, medications) and sociodemographic differences such as age of participants. From the BADAS (Bipolar Affective Disorder and older Adults) Study, we identified 281adults with BD (M = 44.27 years of age, range 19-81), recruited via social media.

All clusters significantly differed across all grouping variables except symptoms of hypo/mania due to low frequency. Across clusters, perceived cognitive failures and BD symptoms increased in lockstep; that is, those reporting more cognitive errors also reported significantly higher symptoms of both depression and hypo/mania. As hypothesized, they also reported significantly lower psychological well-being.

Age did not significantly differ across clusters in contrast to existing research in which cognitive loss is objectively measured. That is, perceived cognitive errors are significantly associated with lower psychological well-being for both young and older adults with BD.