A prospective examination of Beck's cognitive theory of depression in University students in Mainland China

The current multi-wave longitudinal study examined the applicability of Beck's (1967, 1983) cognitive theory of depression to university students in mainland China. During an initial assessment, participants completed measures assessing dysfunctional attitudes and depressive/anxious symptoms. Participants subsequently completed measures assessing negative events and depressive/anxious symptoms once a month for six months. Results provided support for the applicability of Beck's cognitive theory to university students in mainland China. More specifically, higher levels of dysfunctional attitudes were associated with greater increases in depressive symptoms following the occurrence of negative events. At the same time, contrary to findings obtained in Western samples, higher levels of dysfunctional attitudes were also associated with greater increases in anxious symptoms following the occurrence of negative events. These findings may suggest that dysfunctional attitudes exhibit non-specificity as a predictor of depressive symptoms in mainland China.