Depressive Experiences Questionnaire: Does it measure maladaptive and adaptive forms of dependency?

In this study we investigated the distinction between neediness and connectedness as measured using the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire (DEQ; Blatt, D’Afflitti, & Quinlan, 1976) by examining the association between these personality scales and: (1) depression severity, (2) the domains and facets of the Five Factor Model of Personality (FFM; Costa & McCrae, 1985, 1992), and (3) attachment style in a university student sample and in a clinical sample of depressed patients. In the student sample, both neediness and connectedness were related to depression severity; however, the association was stronger for neediness. No relationship was found between these personality scales and symptom severity in the clinical sample. Differences between neediness and connectedness emerged in their relationship to personality and attachment style. In both samples, neediness was predictive of a more psychopathological personality profile and attachment style than was connectedness. The results support the argument that DEQ connectedness assesses a less maladaptive form of dependency than does neediness.