Abstract
Recent cognitive models of negative symptoms in psychosis posit that amotivation relevant beliefs are reflected in the cognitive triad of negative beliefs concerning the self, others and the future. The aim of this study was to test the proposed three-factor structure of putative ‘demotivating beliefs’ and to ascertain the strength of their association with self-reported amotivation. We combined existing scales assessing ‘demotivating beliefs’ to the Demotivating Beliefs Inventory. This scale was used for exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses as well as latent regression analyses with amotivation in two independent community (n1 = 98; n2 = 347) and one clinical sample (n = 36). We found a three-factor structure with satisfying model fit (‘selfdefeating beliefs’, ‘social indifference beliefs’ and ‘low-expectancy-of-pleasure beliefs’). Each factor showed moderate associations with amotivation (β-coefficients from 0.34 to 0.43; R2 = .30). Our results support the validity of the cognitive triad and its benefit as a framework to analyze demotivating beliefs.
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Notes
We note that different terms such as “dysfunctional”, “irrational” or “maladaptive” have been used to describe people’s appraisals, thoughts, beliefs or attitudes in the field of psychopathology. However, classifying beliefs as dysfunctional may not meet the potential functional aspects of beliefs from a patient’s perspective (Westermann et al., in press). Here, we have decided to use the more neutral term “demotivating beliefs” (i.e. beliefs with negative content that are related to amotivation).
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We thank Denise Fischer for her support in recruiting participants, Maik Erdas for his support in the item translation process and Esther Wolfram for her language editing.
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Matthias Pillny, Katarina Krkovic and Tania M. Lincoln declare that they have no conflict of interest including any financial, personal or other relationships with other people or organizations within 3 years of beginning the work submitted that could inappropriately influence, or be perceived to influence, their work.
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Pillny, M., Krkovic, K. & Lincoln, T.M. Development of the Demotivating Beliefs Inventory and Test of the Cognitive Triad of Amotivation. Cogn Ther Res 42, 867–877 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-018-9940-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-018-9940-7