The feeling of major depression often comes loaded with cognitive deficits including issues with memory, processing speed, focusing, and executive reasoning. In addition, emotional regulation is another major complaint for those in the depression headspace.
Published in Behavior Research and Therapy, researchers from University of Oslo looked to address cognitive functioning factors in in depression.
The study included 60 participants between the ages of 18 and 60 years old of whom had received a mild to moderate major depressive disorder diagnosis and reported executive dysfunction in their daily life.
Half the subjects were randomly assigned to complete Goal Management Training (GMT), which included exercises to facilitate planning, organizing, and following through on a goal. The group’s training also had a component of self-monitoring technique where they were encouraged to periodically stop their ongoing behavior to reflect on the present and identify automatic negative thinking, also called “stop-and-think.”
The other half of the group were assigned to complete computerized cognitive training, including intensive learning tasks designed to improve cognitive functions like attention, processing speed, and memory.
Each group received their respective treatment for 6 months with assessments of brooding rumination and emotional regulation before and after.
Both groups saw improvements with brooding rumination and emotional regulation. However, the GMT group also experienced improved clarity of emotional responses, and these effects can be found 6 months after the treatment intervention.
“The application of the metacognitive ‘stop-and-think’ strategy, in addition to practicing mindfulness techniques, and the monitoring of performance in real-life situations, are core aspects of GMT. We suggest that these elements were vital to effecting the self-reported long-term changes in emotion regulation observed after GMT,” wrote the authors in their conclusion.
Essentially their treatment with GMT is a good mindfulness teaching, as compared to many the poor quality teachings that are out there.
J Stubberud et al. Improved emotion regulation in depression following cognitive remediation: A randomized controlled trial. Behavior Research and Therapy. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brat.2021.103991
