A Test of Vulnerability-Specific Stress Generation

Abstract

Although there is a substantial amount of evidence documenting the stress generation effect in depression (i.e., the tendency for depression-prone individuals to experience higher rates of stressful life events that are in part influenced by the individual), additional research is required to elucidate its underlying mechanisms as well as to advance current understanding of the specific types of dependent life stresses (i.e., events influenced by characteristics and attendant behaviors of the individual) relevant to this effect. The present study proposed an extension of the stress generation hypothesis, in which the content of dependent stresses that are produced by depression-prone individuals is contingent upon, and matches, the nature of their particular vulnerability. This extension was tested within the context of the hopelessness theory of depression (Abramson, Metalsky, & Alloy, 1989) and Cole's (1990, 1991) competency-based model of depression. Also assessed were the specificity of excessive reassurance-seeking and negative feedback-seeking to stress generation in social domains and as potential mediators or moderators of the relation between cognitive vulnerability and dependent stress. General support was found for vulnerability-specific stress generation. Specifically, in analyses across vulnerability domains, evidence of relational specificity was found for all domain-specific cognitive vulnerabilities with the exception of self-perceived social competence. In analyses within cognitive vulnerability domains, support for the specificity hypothesis was found for self-perceived competence in academic and appearance domains. The within-domain analyses for negative inferential styles in achievement, interpersonal, and appearance domains produced more mixed results, but were largely supportive. Additionally, excessive reassurance-seeking was found specifically to predict dependent stress in the social domain, and moderated, but did not mediate, the relation between negative inferential styles overall and in the interpersonal domain and their corresponding generated stress. Finally, no evidence was found for a stress generation effect with negative feedback-seeking.