Functional and Dysfunctional rumination in alcohol dependence

Grynberg, Delphine [UCL] Briane, Yasmine [UCL] de Timary, Philippe [UCL] Maurage, Pierre [UCL] et al.

Previous findings have shown that rumination predicts alcohol abuse independently of depression. However, the literature does not inform about the relationships between alcohol dependence and functional and dysfunctional rumination. It has indeed been suggested that there exist a functional form of rumination(concrete thinking) and a dysfunctional form of rumination (abstract thinking). In this study, our aim is to evaluate if alcohol dependence is similarly associated with functional/constructive rumination and dysfunctional/ unconstructive rumination. Forty participants (twenty alcohol abusers and twenty healthy subjects) have completed a questionnaire of rumination (the Cambridge Exeter Repetitive Thought Scale) as well as a questionnaire of depression (Beck Depression Inventory). The results have revealed that alcohol abusers have similar levels of functional rumination than healthy participants but report greater tendency for dysfunctional rumination. This effect stays significant after controlling for depression. This study thus supports that rumination is a main feature of alcohol dependence and suggests that it is the dysfunctional rumination that is problematic in alcohol dependence. At a theoretical level, these findings support that there exist two dimensions of rumination. At a clinical level, this study suggests that one should focus on rumination in the treatment of alcohol dependence.