Do dysfunctional attitudes and depressogenic inferential styles predict positive life events?

Abstract

Although research has indicated that dysfunctional attitudes (DA) and depressogenic inferential styles (DIS) lead to depression when negative life events occur, little is known about how these factors function when negative life events do not occur. This longitudinal study examined the hypotheses that DA and DIS at Time 1 would lead to positive life events at Time 2 (four weeks later) in the absence of, but not in the presence of, negative life events at Time 2. This study also examined whether the effects of DA and DIS on positive life events differ depending on initial levels of depression. Hierarchical regression analyses showed that in the prediction of positive events, interactions of DA and DIS with negative events and depression were not significant. The main effect of DA was significant and positive; the main effect of DIS was significant and negative. The results indicate that the effects of DA and DIS on positive events differ, and the effects do not depend on the frequency of negative events.