Altered occupational behaviour and experience is associated with reduced depressive symptoms in patients undergoing psychosomatic rehabilitation

Work stress is a common factor in the development of depressive disorders. However, not only workplace environment, but also personal attitudes may affect stress experience and susceptibility to depression. The aim of this study was to investigate changes in occupational attitudes following psychosomatic rehabilitation and their association with depressiveness in N = 1708 inpatients. Changes in attitudes and depressiveness were investigated using Bonferroni-corrected t-tests and Cohen’s dz effect sizes for paired samples, associations between changes were assessed by Pearson correlation analysis of pre-post differential values. Changes in work attitudes were found on eight subscales of the Assessment of Work-related Behaviour and Experience Patterns questionnaire (Padj ≤ .001, Cohen’s dz = -0.45 to 0.43). Most patients (57.4%) were classified to have a Burnout occupational coping style at admission, changes following rehabilitation were most frequently observed from Burnout to Sparing coping styles (8.3%). Associations between changes in occupational attitudes and depressive symptom reduction were found for all subscales (r = − .39 to .25) except work ambition, and for occupational coping styles Burnout (r = .19), Sparing (r = − .18) and Healthy (r = − .10), but not Ambitious. The data support an association between occupational beliefs and depressiveness.