Future goal attainment expectations: a life stress mediator in depression onset

Abstract

A goal related model of clinical depression is presented. The central premise suggests that (a) expectation for the uncontrollability of goal related important future outcomes and/or (b) life stressors that threaten high priority future goal attainment and/or (c) environmental shifts that disrupt or block responses involved in high priority future goal attainment and/or (d) chronic low self-esteem related to skills viewed as necessary to high priority future goal attainment may lead alone or in conjunction to a negative view of the probability of future goal attainment. This negative future view is postulated as the critical factor in the ecology of depression. The present study was designed as a preliminary test of one aspect of this model. The model predicts life stressors will be correlated with depression only when the stressors can be viewed as disrupting progress towards a desired future state. The Social Readjustment Rating Scale and the Life Event Schedule were refined to take into consideration the importance of the goal area related to each life event. The prediction was that the goal based refined measures would account for more of the variance in depression scores than the measures in the original form. The premise was tested on 76 undergraduate students at Saint Mary’s University, 48 female and 28 male. Results were in the predicted direction