Uekermann J, Channon S, Lehmkämper C, Abdel-Hamid M, Vollmoeller W, Daum I
Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Ruhr-University of Bochum, Germany.
J Int Neuropsychol Soc. 2008 Jan;14(1):55-62. doi: 10.1017/S1355617708080016.
Major depression is associated with cognitive deficits including memory, executive functions, and affect perception, which have been linked to dysfunction of fronto-subcortical networks. However, little is known about social cognition on more complex socially relevant tasks, such as humor processing. In this investigation a computerized humor-processing task was administered to 27 patients with a diagnosis of major depression (Dep) and 27 healthy controls (HC). Theory of mind (mentalizing) and executive functions were also assessed. Both groups were similar in IQ, age, and gender. Depressed patients performed below the control group with respect to both affective and cognitive aspects of humor processing, and these were related to mentalizing and executive performance. Our findings suggest social cognition deficits in major depression. Ability to process humor and appreciate mentalistic perspectives may in turn influence social interactions and should be given consideration in therapeutic approaches to depression.
重度抑郁症与包括记忆、执行功能和情感感知在内的认知缺陷有关，这些缺陷与前额叶-皮层下网络功能障碍有关。然而，对于更复杂的社会相关任务（如幽默加工）中的社会认知，我们知之甚少。在这项研究中，对27名被诊断为重度抑郁症（Dep）的患者和27名健康对照者（HC）进行了一项计算机化的幽默加工任务。同时还评估了心理理论（心智化）和执行功能。两组在智商、年龄和性别方面相似。在幽默加工的情感和认知方面，抑郁症患者的表现均低于对照组，且这些表现与心智化和执行功能表现相关。我们的研究结果表明重度抑郁症存在社会认知缺陷。幽默加工能力和理解心理观点的能力可能反过来影响社会互动，在抑郁症的治疗方法中应予以考虑。
