INFORMATION-PROCESSING AND AFFECTIVE DISTRESS IN OSTEOARTHRITIS PATIENTS

The relationship between affective distress and chronic illnesses is w ell recognized. Recent research has focused on depressive symptomatolo gy among patients with chronic pain. The present study was conducted t o (a) examine depressive information processing in osteoarthritis pati ents and (b) assess whether the presence of somatic items on a depress ion measure would affect the observed associations between information processing and affective distress in arthritis patients. A group of 4 0 osteoarthritis patients was assessed using the Beck Depression Inven tory, and a non-sell-report measure of depressive self-schemas. Result s suggest that observed depressive cognitive structures appear to be b etter differentiated by a nonsomatic measure of affective distress and that individuals selectively process information to fit the parameter s of their currently active self-schema.