Impaired empathic functioning in chronic depression: Behavioral evidence for the Cognitive Behavioral Analysis System of Psychotherapy (CBASP) model

Background: The CBASP model proposes preoperational functioning as a core feature of persistent depressive disorders (PDD). Empathy deficits comprise one aspect. Resulting from childhood maltreatment, empathy deficits may aggravate social isolation, a key factor in the maintenance of depression. CBASP targets empathy by teaching patients to disengage from past experiences and to engage successfully in present social interactions. However, behavioral evidence for empathy deficits in PDD has remained elusive. We reasoned that deficits become apparent only under stress and that these deficits improve after CBASP-treatment.Methods: Twenty-two patients and 21 controls performed two parallel versions of the Multifaceted Empathy Test. For stress induction, a negative autobiographical event was presented before performing the task. A neutral event served as control. Fifteen patients performed the experiment twice, before and after a 12-week inpatient CBASP-treatment.Results: Supporting our hypotheses, patients showed reduced empathy under stress, while no group difference was found in the absence of stress. Reduced empathy correlated with the level of re-experiencing negative memories. Pre-post-treatment comparison revealed a significant time x stress x group interaction, i.e. the stress-induced empathy deficit improved in patients over time. Post-treatment empathic capacity correlated positively with clinical improvement. Limitations: The majority of patients were on medication.Conclusions: Our findings provide empirical support for the CBASP model, but highlight an important new aspect: Empathy is not generally deficient in PDD but becomes impaired under stress. In real-life situations, stress-induced empathy impairments may exacerbate interpersonal conflicts. CBASP's interpersonal focus improved empathy, accompanied by clinical improvement as the model predicts.