Regional brain activity in emotion: A framework for understanding cognition in depression

A variety of cognitive characteristics have been shown to be associated with depressed moods. We propose that these tendencies are directly related to activity in specific regions of the brain. Using a comprehensive model of brain activity in emotion as a guide, we review the literature on cognitive function in depression and induced sad mood to provide evidence that depressed people are characterised by deficits and biases in performance on cognitive tasks that depend on regions of the brain that are more or less active in depression.