The learned helplessness model of depression was later changed to the attributional reformulation of the learned helplessness theory of depression. Describe how the attributional reformulation improves upon the learned helplessness model, and outline what the theory purports.

What will be an ideal response?


Ans: The learned helplessness model theorizes that depressed humans can become psychologically helpless. When applied to humans, the idea behind the theory is that life experiences can teach people to give up in their attempts to cope with a situation. The model was originally created for dogs and later applied to humans. The attributional reformulation of the learned helplessness theory of depression improves upon the learned helplessness model of depression in that it is a cognitive-social model of human depression. It encompasses thinking components that were missing from the prior model. The attributional model proposes that people are depressed because of the attributions they make for why unfortunate things happen. According to the model, people who are prone to depression make pessimistic attributions that cause them to believe that there is nothing they can ever say or do to change their unfortunate circumstances.
Cognitive Domain: Application
Answer Location: A Social Psychological Model of Depression
Difficulty Level: Medium

Psychology

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