Thinking better with depression
Mood disorder may provide an analytical lift
By Bruce Bower
Depression may have an analytical upside. People hospitalized for this mood disorder display a flair for making good choices when many options must be considered one at a time, a new study finds.
Depression may prompt an analytical thinking style suited to solving sequential problems, such as deciding when to stop a house hunt and purchase a property or when to stop playing the field and marry a suitor, say psychologist Bettina von Helversen of the University of Basel in Switzerland and her colleagues.
It’s also possible that depressed people adopt a pessimistic outlook that encourages a thorough evaluation of available options, von Helversen’s team suggests in an upcoming Journal of Abnormal Psychology.
“Depression may improve sequential decision making, which includes some high-stakes choices,” she says.