Journal ofCounselmg Psychology 1988. Vol 35. No :. I3J-I3S JUfJ b> ihe Amoncan Ps>chologjcal Associalion. fnt i>o::-oi&^8S'Soo.7 Social Problem Solving as a Moderator of Stress-Related Depressive Symptoms: A Prospective Analysis Arthur M. Nezu Fairleigh Dickinson University and Franklin D. Roosevelt Veterans Administration Hospital George F. Ronan Alfred University Previous research has suggested thai problem-solving skills serve to moderate the likelihood that individuals will experience depressive symptoms as a function of negative stressful life events. The present studv attempted both lo replicate this finding and to provide for a more rigorous lest of this h\pothesisb> (a) using a prospective design, (b) controlling for prior level ofdepression, (c) incorporating two measures of problem soKing. and (d) including several methodological controls to increase the validity of the assessment of stressful life events. Results from both the cross-sectional and prospective analvses involving data collected from l?0 university students provided support for [he hypothesis thai problem solving moderates stress-related depressive symptoms. More specifically, for bolh measures of problem solving, resulls indicated lhat effective problem solvers under high levels of stress reported significantlv lower depression scores than ineffective problem solvers under similar levels of stress. Social problem solving refers to the cognitive-behavioral process by which people identify or discover effective strate- gies of coping with problematic situations encountered in daily living. More important, it can be considered a general coping strategy whose goal is the discovery and identification of a wide range of effective solutions and therefore contributes to the facilitation and maintenance of general social compe- tence (D'Zurilla. 1986; D'Zurilla & Nezu. 1982). The impor- tant implications of problem solving and problem-solving training uithin the counseling process has recently been high- lighted (Heppner, 1978). According to D'Zurilla and Nezu (1982). problem soKing involves five specific component processes: (a) problem ori- entation (the cognitive and motivational set with which one approaches and recognizes problems in general); Ib) problem definition and formulation (the delineation of a problem into concrete and specific terms and the identification of specific goals); (c) generation of alternatives (the production of an exhaustive list of appropriate solution possibilities); (d) deci- sion making (the systematic evaluation of a range of alterna- tive solutions regarding consequences and the selection of the most optimal choices): and (c) solution implementation and verification (the monitoring and evaluation of the actual solution outcome after its implementation). Recently, research has identified a strong association be- tween social problem soiling and depression (Nezu. 1987; Nezu. Nezu. & Perri, in press). For example, studies indicate that ineffective problem solvers report higher levels of depres- sive symptoms than effective problem solvers do (Heppner & Anderson, 1985; Nezu, 1985). Depressed individuals have also been found to evidence certain problem-solving deficits when compared with normal controls (Gotlib & Asarnow, We \vould like lo extend our appreciation to Christine M. Nezu for her helpful comments concerning earlier versions of this article. Correspondence concerning ihis article should be addressed to Arthur M. Nezu. Department of Psychology. Fairleigh Dickinson University. Teaneck. New Jersey 07666. 1979; Nezu, I986a; Nezu & Ronan, 1987). Treatment ap- proaches developed specifically upon problem-solving prin- ciples have been found to be efficacious in significantly re- ducing depression (Hussian & Lawrence. !981:Nezu. 1986b). Within a life-stress framework ofdepression. problem soli- ing has been hypothesized to serve as a moderator of depres- sive symptoms for individuals experiencing high levels of stress emanating from major negative life-change events. Ac- cording to this hypothesis, people who are unable effectively to resolve the problems inherent in negative life events will experience more depressive symptoms than individuals char- acterized by effective problem-solving skills (Nezu. 1987). Indirect evidence is provided b> a study (Nezu & Ronan. 1985) that found support for the following sequence of rela- tions: (a) Experiencing negative stressful events often results in an increase in problematic situations; (b) the degree to which individuals cope effectively with these problems is a function of their problem-solving skills; and (c) effective res- olution of these problems serves to decrease the probability of depressive symptoms. A more direct test of this hypothesis was conducted recently by Nezu. Nezu, Saraydarian, Kalmar, and Ronan (1986). Results from this study indicated that effective problem sol- vers under high levels of stress reported significantly lower levels of depressive symptoms as compared with ineffective problem solvers under similar levels of high stress. Although this investigation does provide initial support for problem solving as a moderator of the stress-related depression hypoth- esis, because of its cross-sectional nature, conclusive interpre- tations are limited. More specifically, concurrent assessment of problem-solving skills and depressive symptoms does not allow for an accurate determination of the validity between alternative rival hypotheses. For example, it is possible that individuals who are already distressed, when asked at the same time to complete inventories assessing stress and coping, may attempt to justify their affliction by either artificially reporting an increased amount of proceeding stress or lowered use of the coping strategy under investigation (i.e., problem- 134 This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers. This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.