The direct and indirect relationship between social cognition and psychosocial dysfunction in major depressive disorder

Abstract

Background: Recent evidence suggests that depressed patients experience social cognitive deficits (e.g., poor affect recognition). However, very little is known regarding the contribution of social cognitive deficits to psychosocial dysfunction (e.g., occupational functioning). In particular, the mechanistic roles of depression severity and cognitive deficits (e.g., memory) in this domain have not been explored. The current study evaluated the extent to which mood symptoms and cognitive deficits provide a mechanistic explanation for the relationship between social cognitive and psychosocial deficits in major depressive disorder (MDD). Methods: Data were obtained from 111 participants with MD..