Mood and Global Symptom Changes among Psychotherapy Clients with Depressive Personality

Abstract

The present study assessed the rate of depressive personality (DP), as measured by the self-report instrument depressive personality disorder inventory (DPDI), among 159 clients entering psychotherapy at an outpatient university clinic. The presenting clinical profile was evaluated for those with and without DP, including levels of depressed mood, other psychological symptoms, and global severity of psychopathology. Clients were followed naturalistically over the course of therapy, up to 40 weeks, and reassessed on these variables again after treatment. Results indicated that 44 percent of the sample qualified for DP prior to treatment, and these individuals had a comparatively more severe and complex presenting disposition than those without DP. Mixed-model repeated-measures analysis of variance was used to examine between-groups changes on mood and global severity over time, with those with DP demonstrating larger reductions on both outcome variables, although still showing more symptoms after treatment, than those without DP. Only eleven percent of the sample continued to endorse DP following treatment. These findings suggest that in routine clinical situations, psychotherapy may benefit individuals with DP.

Figure 1

Changes in mean depression scores from pre- to posttreatment between groups (DP yes, top line; DP no, bottom line). Note. SCL-Depression: symptom checklist-90 depression subscale.

Figure 2

Changes in mean GSI scores from pre- to posttreatment between groups (DP yes, top line; DP no, bottom line). Note. SCL-GSI: Symptom Checklist-90 Global Severity Index.