An examination of the effect of depression on the cognitive functioning and academic performance of college students
Abstract
Depression is a serious mental disorder that affects a significant portion of the population and has significant impact on productivity. In some patients, depression may involve cognitive dysfunction. Neuropsychological, neuropsychiatric, and neuroimaging studies have identified depressive cognitive impairment as deficits in attention, memory, executive functioning, and problem solving. Accordingly, it is likely that academic functioning suffers in the significant number of students who experience depression. This study sought to identify executive dysfunction in students who had clinically significant scores on a depression scale, and the relationship of that dysfunction to academic performance and social adjustment in the academic environment. The executive function components of attention, organization, and inhibition were examined. Higher levels of depression were associated with more impairment in executive functioning component of inhibition, lower GPAs, and poorer social adjustment in the academic environment. Impaired inhibition was also associated with lower GPAs. No significant relationships with the components of attention and organization were found.
Subject Area
Mental health|Behavioral psychology
Recommended Citation
Joyce Marie Fletcher,
"An examination of the effect of depression on the cognitive functioning and academic performance of college students"
(2010).
ETD Collection for Tennessee State University.
Paper AAI1488655.
https://digitalscholarship.tnstate.edu/dissertations/AAI1488655