Background: Psychological processes in bipolar disorder are of both clinical and theoretical importance.
Aims: To examine depressogenic psychological processes and reward responsivity in relation to different mood episodes (mania, depression, remission) and bipolar symptomatology.
Method: One hundred and seven individuals with bipolar disorder (34 in a manic/hypomanic or mixed affective state; 30 in a depressed state and 43 who were euthymic) and 41 healthy controls were interviewed with Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV and completed a battery of self-rated and experimental measures assessing negative cognitive styles, coping response to negative affect, self-esteem stability and reward responsiveness.
Results: Individuals in all episodes differed from controls on most depression-related and reward responsivity measures. However, correlational analyses revealed clear relationships between negative cognitive styles and depressive symptoms, and reward responsivity and manic symptoms.
Conclusions: Separate psychological processes are implicated in depression and mania, but cognitive vulnerability to depression is evident even in patients who are euthymic.