The DOI matches its Crossref record; 370 of the 371 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
The bright side of being blue: Depression as an adaptation for analyzing complex problems.
Open accessAbstract
Depression is the primary emotional condition for which help is sought. Depressed people often report persistent rumination, which involves analysis, and complex social problems in their lives. Analysis is often a useful approach for solving complex problems, but it requires slow, sustained processing, so disruption would interfere with problem solving. The analytical rumination hypothesis proposes that depression is an evolved response to complex problems, whose function is to minimize disruption and sustain analysis of those problems by (a) giving the triggering problem prioritized access to processing resources, (b) reducing the desire to engage in distracting activities (anhedonia), and (c) producing psychomotor changes that reduce exposure to distracting stimuli. As processing resources are limited, sustained analysis of the triggering problem reduces the ability to concentrate on other things. The hypothesis is supported by evidence from many levels-genes, neurotransmitters and their receptors, neurophysiology, neuroanatomy, neuroenergetics, pharmacology, cognition, behavior, and efficacy of treatments. In addition, the hypothesis provides explanations for puzzling findings in the depression literature, challenges the belief that serotonin transmission is low in depression, and has implications for treatment.
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“‘depression’ (a disorder characterized by cognitive rumination) confers specific social advantages to help keep social problems in mental focus”
From Hypernatural Monitoring: A Social Rehearsal Account of Smartphone Addiction (2018) · cites this paper as Andrews and Thomson, 2009
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Metadata
- Authors
- Andrews, P. W., & Thomson, J. A.
- Affiliations
- Virginia Commonwealth University (US)
- University of Virginia (US)
- ORCID
- Andrews, Paul W.
- Venue
- Psychological Review
- Published
- 2009-07
- Volume
- 116
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 620-654
- ISSN
- 0033-295X (ISSN-L)
- 1939-1471
- PMC
- PMC2734449
- OpenAlex
- W1966233504
- Cited by
- 549
- References
- 371
- Citations by year
- 2026: 21 · 2025: 27 · 2024: 46 · 2023: 31 · 2022: 24 · 2021: 37 · 2020: 66 · 2019: 23 · 2018: 27 · 2017: 30 · 2016: 34 · 2015: 32 · 2014: 41 · 2013: 32 · 2012: 32
- FWCI
- 33.01
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Psychological Review (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institutes of Health (MH-20030, DA-018673)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pharmacology (medical) › Treatment of Major Depression
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
- Keywords
- depression, rumination, complex problem solving, anhedonia, psychomotor changes, processing resources, serotonin transmission, neurobiology of depression, depression treatment
- MeSH terms
- Adaptation, Psychological, Affect, Antidepressive Agents, Arousal, Attention, Awareness, Depression, Depressive Disorder, Major, Major Depressive Disorder, Biological Evolution, Humans, Memory, Short-Term, Models, Psychological, Synaptic Transmission, Problem Solving, Psychomotor Performance, Psychotherapy, Serotonin, Stress, Psychological, Thinking, Prefrontal Cortex
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