Cognitive failures, dysfunctional attitudes, and symptomatology: A longitudinal study

A longitudinal study is presented in which a group of mature students were assessed at four months apart for their symptom levels, the occurrence of life events, and two putative cognitive vulnerability measures of dysfunctional attitudes, and of a proneness to cognitive failures. The results showed that although both the Time 1 cognitive measures were significantly correlated with symptom levels four months later, only the effect for cognitive failures remained significant when the initial symptom levels were taken into consideration. Speculations are presented about the possible nature of this vulnerability, and it is concluded that future studies of cognitive vulnerability should not limit themselves to self-reported negative thoughts or attitudes.