Association entre la dépression et le biais d'attribution hostile chez les individus hostiles et non hostiles : une étude de potentiels reliés aux événements
Background: Hostility and aggression have been found to be highly prevalent among depressed  patients and are associated with higher comorbidity and illness severity levels. Although  negative interpretation biases are a fundamental element of cognitive models of depression, few  studies have examined the specific biases in information processing, mainly the hostile  attribution bias, found in hostile individuals who present depressive symptoms. Method: Using  pre-collected data from a sample of 72 (male=41,6%, female=58,3%) undergraduate and  community-based hostile (n=26) and non-hostile (n=46) adult participants, the authors aimed to  examine the association between depression and the hostile attribution bias by determining  whether depression level scores were uniquely related to electrophysiological measures of the  hostile attribution bias. Results: The hostile group showed higher measured levels of depression  and reactive aggression, compared to the non-hostile group. Also, depression scores were  significant predictors of the N400 effect in the non-hostile condition, while reactive aggression  was not, whereas in the hostile condition, the overall model was significant, with depression and  reactive aggression levels both showing strong trends towards significance. Limitations: A small  sample size limited the scope of our conclusions. Also, sample selection prevented the authors  from examining specific group differences regarding the hostile attribution bias in depressed and  non-depressed groups. Conclusion: This study highlights the importance of better understanding  the perception mechanisms that are associated with depression and to consider the application of  cognitive restructuring techniques to counter biased interpretation processes in settings where  depression and aggression intersect. This study also suggests that alternatives to self-evaluative  methodologies might be more useful when assessing automatic and implicit processes.
N400 Aggression Hostile attribution bias ERP