XXXX symptomatology and the influence of the behavioral avoidance and activation: A gender-specific investigation.

@entity1 @entity177 @entity308 @entity393
BACKGROUND: @entity308 is a highly prevalent disorder which is usually considered as differentially experienced depending on gender. Behavioral theories of @entity308 pinpoint the importance of the behavioral avoidance in the maintenance of @entity308 . However, little is known about the specific impact of the behavioral avoidance and activation on each depressive symptom as well as on gender differences on the behavioral features of @entity308 . METHODS: This study's aim was two-fold: (1) to assess the presence of gender differences on the BDI-II; (2) to investigate the respective predictive value of behavioral avoidance and of behavioral activation on each depressive symptom assessed by the BDI-II depending on gender. Community adults and adults attending mental healthcare composed the sample. RESULTS: Results showed differences in symptomatology profiles depending on gender (e.g. higher scores of sadness, self-criticalness in @entity1 , higher scores of past @entity177 and @entity393 in @entity1 ). Behavioral avoidance positively predicted almost all @entity308 in @entity1 and in @entity1 while behavioral activation negatively predicted almost all symptoms in both gender. Nevertheless, the strengths of these relationships were different for some symptoms (e.g. pessimism). LIMITATIONS: The use of self-report instruments; the lack of assessment of causal or precipitating factors of the depressive symptomatology; the higher number of @entity1 in the sample. CONCLUSIONS: Results are discussed with respect to previous findings and present clinical implications: (1) to underline the relevance of the combination of gender-specific assessment tools; (2) to highlight the need of tailored psychological intervention.
