It is proposed that the nature of the self or, more correctly, the "selves" predisposes some individuals to depression in the face of aversive life events. Theorists characterize the complexity of this multifaceted self according to two structural features, i.e., differentiation and integration. Differentiation, first discussed by James Bieri, was evaluated empirically by Linville (e.g., 1982) for its relationship to depressive symptomatology. Differentiation refers to the number of relatively independent elements within the self-structure. Integration reflects the hierarchical interrelationships among those elements. / A recently-developed statistical procedure, the Hierarchical Classes Model (HICLAS; De Boeck & Rosenberg, 1988), was employed to provide measures of the complexities of each subject's self-structure. Consonant with more sophisticated theoretical discourse on the "self", the HICLAS analysis provides more refined representation of the multidimensionality of the self than is available from other statistical methods. / This two-month prospective investigation employed non-clinical female subjects to investigate the role of self-complexity, derived from the HICLAS paradigm, as a vulnerability factor in subsequent dysphoria. Partialling out initial dysphoria, individuals with a less differentiated self-structure reported significantly more depressive symptoms under conditions of increasingly unpleasant life events. Under conditions of greatest unpleasantness, differentiation was strongly negatively associated with depressive symptoms, supporting Linville's "buffering hypothesis". Results for integration measures were similar but less robust. / Interestingly, under conditions of fewest unpleasant events, there was a reliable and positive relationship between differentiation and dysphoria. As Markus and colleagues have remarked, it is important to begin to evaluate the conditions under which a highly "complex" self-structure may serve as a vulnerability rather than an invulnerability to depression. / Questions are also raised in regard to the role of affect within the self-structure, the importance of self-discrepancies (e.g., actual/ideal), conceptual refinement of "integration", the relative contributions of differentiation and integration to a complex system, and the utility of measuring the selves within their phenomenological context (i.e., self-with-other). / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 54-09, Section: B, page: 4916. / Major Professor: Jack E. Hokanson. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1993.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_77012 |
| Contributors | Fuhr, Susan Kay., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 135 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
Page generated in 0.0021 seconds