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Review
. 2021 Oct:41:100-106.
doi: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.04.003. Epub 2021 Apr 21.

Modeling the onset of a depressive episode: A self-regulation perspective

Timothy J Strauman  1
Affiliations
Review

Modeling the onset of a depressive episode: A self-regulation perspective

Timothy J Strauman. Curr Opin Psychol. 2021 Oct.

Abstract

Major depression is an episodic disorder which, for many individuals, has its onset in a distinct change of emotional state which then persists over time. The present article explores the utility of combining a dynamical systems approach to depression, focusing specifically on the change of state associated with episode onset, with a self-regulation perspective, which operationalizes how feedback received in the ongoing process of goal pursuit influences affect, motivation, and behavior, for understanding how a depressive episode begins. The goals of this review are to survey the recent literature modeling the onset of a depressive episode and to illustrate how a self-regulation perspective can provide a conceptual framework and testable hypotheses regarding episode onset within a dynamical systems model of depression.

Keywords: Dynamical systems theory; Major depressive episode; Onset; Review; Self-regulation.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest statement Nothing declared.

Figures

Figure 1:
Figure 1:
A model for self-regulation as a contributory causal factor in the onset of unipolar depression (Strauman, 2017).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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