Cognitive Therapy and Research, Iiol. 10, No. 6, 1986, pp. 695"705 Studying the Role of Cognition in Depression: Well-Trodden Paths and Cul-de-Sacs James C. Coyne l University of Michigan Ian Gotlib University of Western Ontario In their commentary on our earlier review (Coyne & Gotlib, 1983), Segal and Shaw minimize the problems faced by the cogni. ~, e approach to the study of depression. Their repeated references to cognitive processes that are la- tent and therefore not reported by subjects represent a substantial retreat from empiricism. In general, the notion of schema or schematic processing remains problematic. Published research does not support the existence of an identifiable cognitive vulnerability to depression. Other conceptual methodological and empirical difficulties are noted. We argue that the cen- tral defect in current cognitive approaches to depression is their inattention to the difficulties faced by depressed persons in their everyday environments, how they cope, and with what consequences. KEY WORDS: depression; schema; cognition. Segal and Shaw present a discussion intended to serve two purposes: first, to clarify the misconceptions they feel were present in our earlier review of cognitive approaches to the study of depression (Coyne & Gotlib, 1983), and second, to offer an updated perspective on the issues discussed in that arti- cle. In this paper we will address these two aspects of Segal and Shaw's arti- cle, and in addition, we will take this opportunity to present briefly our own updated view of the role of cognition in depression. ~Address all correspondence to James C. Coyne, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109. 695 0147-5916/86/1200-0695505.00/0 © 1986PlenumPublishing Corporation