A severe test of interpersonal theory of depression among criminal defendants

We tested Coyne’s (1976) interpersonal theory of depression using a highly specialized psychiatric sample (76 criminal defendants referred for psychiatric evaluation). We assessed whether mood-disordered participants scored lower on an index of social contact than nondepressed participants. Consistent with interpersonal theory, depressed participants obtained lower scores on the social contact measure than nondepressed participants – to our knowledge, the first results to support the diagnostic specificity component of Coyne’s theory among a clinical sample. Number of comorbid diagnoses was not significantly related to social contact. It appears that Coyne’s theory possesses explanatory power, even when subjected to a relatively severe empirical test.