Date of Conferral

2022

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Psychology

Advisor

Lisa Scharff

Abstract

The field of positive psychology has included research on the personality traits of optimism and pessimism and how they predict depression; however, there has been limited investigation on whether these characteristics can predict treatment outcomes. This study used a quantitative nonexperimental design with archived data provided by Summit Research Network, to evaluate whether pessimism or optimism, as measured by the Pessimism–Optimism (PSM) scale of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, had an effect on depression and somatic symptom change in 98 adults with depression who were randomized into imipramine, alprazolam, or placebo treatment. Seligman’s explanatory style theory was used to guide the research. Repeated-measures mixed analyses of covariance were employed to examine treatment and explanatory style group differences using pretreatment symptoms and sex as covariates, with depression and somatic symptom scores as dependent variables. There was no significant effect for time or PSM categorization in either analysis. The somatic symptom change score significantly differed by treatment group, with the placebo group experiencing a significantly greater decrease than both drug groups. This study adds to the current literature on the role of explanatory style on treatment outcome and the influence of the placebo effect for individuals with depression and somatic symptoms. Positive social change implications include benefiting individuals with depression and healthcare providers by indicating that PSM categorization does not necessarily predict depression treatment outcome and does not need to be screened for at pretreatment.

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