Kraaij, Vivian, Bik, Janneke, Garnefski, Nadia · Journal of health psychology · 2019 · DOI
This study looked at how 30 people with ME/CFS cope with depression by using different thinking and behavior strategies. The researchers found that the way people think about and reframe their problems has a bigger impact on depression than what they do. Focusing on positive aspects, looking at problems in a different light, and avoiding catastrophizing (imagining the worst) seemed to help the most.
Depression is common in ME/CFS and significantly impacts quality of life. This study provides evidence-based guidance on which thinking strategies might be worth developing in psychological treatment programs, offering hope for better-targeted interventions tailored to ME/CFS patients rather than generic depression approaches.
This study cannot prove that changing coping strategies will reduce depression—it only shows associations in a small sample at one point in time. The small sample size (n=30) means results may not apply to all ME/CFS patients. The study also cannot determine whether certain coping patterns cause depression or whether depression leads people to use certain coping styles.
About the PEM badge: “PEM required” means post-exertional malaise was an explicit required diagnostic criterion for participant inclusion in this study — not that PEM was studied, observed, or discussed. Studies using criteria that do not require PEM (e.g. Fukuda, Oxford) are tagged “PEM not required”. How the atlas works →
The first block is for the primary paper and is the citation you should use in research work. The atlas-snapshot line only applies if you are specifically referring to this atlas’s reading of the paper on the date shown.
Primary citation
Kraaij, Vivian, Bik, Janneke, & Garnefski, Nadia (2019). Cognitive and behavioral coping in people with Chronic fatigue syndrome: An exploratory study searching for intervention targets for depressive symptoms.. Journal of health psychology. https://doi.org/10.1177/1359105317707259
BibTeX
@article{mecfsatlas-kraaij-2019-cognitive-behavioral,
author = {Kraaij, Vivian and Bik, Janneke and Garnefski, Nadia},
title = {Cognitive and behavioral coping in people with Chronic fatigue syndrome: An exploratory study searching for intervention targets for depressive symptoms.},
journal = {Journal of health psychology},
year = {2019},
doi = {10.1177/1359105317707259},
note = {PubMed: 28810458},
url = {https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/kraaij-2019-cognitive-behavioral},
}Atlas snapshot reference
ME/CFS Atlas. Generator v1 / Scanner v1.4 / policy v0.1. Accessed 2026-05-30. https://www.mecfsatlas.com/evidence/kraaij-2019-cognitive-behavioral
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