Cognitive Distortion, Helplessness, and Depressed Mood in Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Four-Year Longitudinal Analysis

Cognitive models of depression have been invoked to explain the development of depressive symptoms and disorders in patients with chronic pain. However, few long-term, prospective studies have examined A. T. Beck's (1967 , 1987) model in this context. Seventy-two patients with rheumatoid arthritis completed the Beck Depression Inventory, the Cognitive Errors Questionnaire, and the Arthritis Helplessness Index during an initial assessment and again 4 years later. Initial levels of cognitive distortion were significantly related to follow-up levels of depressed mood, controlling for initial depression levels. This was also true for perceptions of helplessness. In contrast, initial depression levels did not predict changes in these cognitive processes. These results suggest that cognitive distortion and helplessness contribute to depressed mood among patients with arthritis.