DEPRESSION AND THE MELANCHOLIC TEMPERAMENT

We examine how depression relates to two broad affective dispositions which we call 'Negative Temperament' and 'Positive Temperament'. Depre ssed individuals characteristically display a particular combination o f these traits (high Negative/low Positive Temperament), which also de fines the traditional 'melancholic' type. Other evidence, however, sug gests that this pattern is not unique to depression, but may also char acterize other types of disorder: high Negative Temperament, in partic ular, appears to be nonsignificantly associated with distress-based ps ychopathology. Finally, we review data indicating that the etiology of these relations ir highly complex. Specifically, it appears that (i) temperament influences the development and course of depression; (ii) depressive episodes can lead to significant changes in temperament, so me of which may be permanent; and (iii) temperament and depression may reflect, in part, a common genetic diathesis.