Depression and ostracism: the role of attachment, self-esteem and rejection sensitivity for treatment success and depressive symptom deterioration

The current research programme is based on three studies investigating ramifications of ostracism in inpatients diagnosed with depression. It aims at understanding responses to ostracism in depressed patients, and the implications for psychotherapy and symptom deterioration using experimental (study 1) and longitudinal (studies 2 and 3) research designs. Investigating psychological factors such as attachment, self-esteem and Rejection Sensitivity, we found that attachment affects the immediate, physiological reactions to ostracism (study 1), that state self-esteem after an ostracism experience impacts therapy outcome (study 2) and that Rejection Sensitivity, the cognitive- affective disposition to anxiously expect and overact to rejection, predicts deterioration of depressive symptoms 6 months after treatment (study 3). These results highlight the salience of attachment when investigating reactions to ostracism, and the importance of Rejection Sensitivity over the course of therapy as an indicator for therapy outcome and risk for relapse.