The Ability to Control One's Thoughts Alleviates the Adverse Effects of Negative Life Events on Depression

Feng Ying Lu; Wen Jing Yang; Qing Lin Zhang; Jiang Qiu

doi:10.1891/JCPSY-D-20-00032

The Ability to Control One's Thoughts Alleviates the Adverse Effects of Negative Life Events on Depression

J Cogn Psychother. 2021 Jul 20:JCPSY-D-20-00032. doi: 10.1891/JCPSY-D-20-00032. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Feng Ying Lu^{1

2}, Wen Jing Yang¹, Qing Lin Zhang¹, Jiang Qiu³

Affiliations

¹ Southwest University, Chongqing, China.
² Nanning Normal University, Guangxi, China.
³ Southwest University, Chongqing, China qiuj318@swu.edu.cn.

PMID: 34285137
DOI: 10.1891/JCPSY-D-20-00032

Abstract

Although negative life events are a risk factor for developing depression, cognitive control can help maintain one's mental health. However, whether thought-control ability (TCA) can alleviate the adverse effects of negative life events on depression is unclear. Therefore, two studies were conducted to test if it does, by having participant's complete measures of negative life events, TCA, and depression. Study 1, which included 140 healthy young adults, showed TCA mediated the relationship between negative life events and depressive symptoms, and that TCA also moderated the relationship between negative life events and depressive symptoms. Study 2 recruited patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) to test whether the findings could be generalized to individuals with MDD. Study 2 found TCA also mediated the relationship between negative life events and symptoms of MDD. Suggesting that improving the ability to control negative thoughts in daily life help maintain mental health and prevent depressive symptoms.

Keywords: depression; memory control; negative life events; thought-control ability.