The relation of early abuse to cognition and coping in depression
Kuyken W., Brewin CR.
An investigation was conducted to assess the attributional style, self- esteem, and coping of currently depressed women with and without a reported history of childhood physical or sexual abuse. Whereas a history of abuse showed few associations with these cognitions, individuals reporting more intrusive memories of abuse had lower self-esteem, a more negative attributional style, and coped through more avoidance. When severity of depression was controlled, abuse history and intrusive memories still were associated with lower levels of positive self-esteem.