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Student Library

A space for psychology students to read, search for sources and discuss, focused on depression and addiction.

Student reading route

Who is who in psychology?

25 profiles connect lives, concepts and works. Choose a path below, compare perspectives and then follow the research readings.

Explore all figures and portraitsContinue to research readings ↓

Research reading paths

Selected from this website’s bibliography: three papers from 2024–2025, followed by a 2020 review and older theoretical background. Dates and study types are shown so that recent publications and historical foundations remain distinguishable. This is a selected reading path, not an exhaustive literature search.

For each paper, record the question, design, participants, comparator, outcome and limits before writing a conclusion.

Recent reading · 2024–2025

2025 clinically oriented narrative review

Why distinguish wanting from pleasure?

Read to distinguish wanting, pleasure and learning in depression: experiences described with similar words may involve different processes.

Finding and limits

The review distinguishes wanting, experienced pleasure and learning in reward processing. Anhedonia may involve difficulties in some or several of these processes.

Limit: This is not an intervention meta-analysis. Conceptual distinctions do not imply that everyone has the same pattern.

Reading exercise: Compare narrative and systematic reviews. Identify how anhedonia is defined and which process each finding concerns.

Wu C, Mu Q, Gao W, Lu S. The characteristics of anhedonia in depression: a review from a clinically oriented perspective. Translational Psychiatry. 2025;15:90.

Publication / DOIResearch card

2024 · Meta-analysis of animal experiments and review of human studies

Similar mechanisms, the same diagnosis?

Read before describing addiction simply as a bad habit. Repetition, automaticity and persistence despite adverse consequences address different questions.

Finding and limits

This 2024 paper argues against treating habitual and goal-directed behaviour as two rigid categories. It distinguishes habit from compulsivity: automatic responding is not the same construct as persistence despite harmful consequences.

Limit: The meta-analysis concerns animal experiments; human studies are reviewed separately. The focus is alcohol use. Findings cannot be directly generalised to every substance, phone use or a particular person.

Reading exercise: Separate the animal meta-analysis from the review of human studies. List assumptions needed for translation across species.

Giannone F, Ebrahimi C, Endrass T, Hansson AC, Schlagenhauf F, Sommer WH. Bad habits–good goals? Meta-analysis and translation of the habit construct to alcoholism. Translational Psychiatry 14, 298 (2024).

Publication / DOIResearch card

2024 systematic review and meta-analysis · 19 randomised trials, 4,808 adults

Can insomnia psychotherapy affect mood?

Read to connect sleep and depressive symptoms. CBT-I in this research is distinct from general sleep advice, and the included population matters.

Finding and limits

Among adults with depression and insomnia, cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) increased the likelihood of depression response compared with control conditions. Evidence certainty for this outcome was moderate.

Limit: Searches extended to March 2024. Findings do not generalise to every sleep difficulty or person and do not guarantee long-term recovery.

Reading exercise: Write a PICO: population, intervention, comparator and outcomes. Distinguish depression response from insomnia remission.

Furukawa Y et al. (2024). J Affect Disord. 367:359–366. PMID: 39242039.

Publication / DOIResearch card

Earlier review and theoretical foundations · 2011–2020

Cochrane systematic review · 2020 · 53 studies, 5,495 adults

Can action begin before mood improves?

Read to distinguish behavioural activation from a simple activity list. This 2020 review is an entry point, not a claim to be the newest search.

Finding and limits

Behavioural activation is a structured psychotherapy approach supporting engagement in meaningful activities. The review suggests possible short-term benefit over usual care and no clear difference from CBT. This does not establish definite equivalence.

Limit: Searches ended in January 2020. Evidence was mostly low to moderate certainty; long-term outcomes remain uncertain. Some sensitivity analyses did not confirm the advantage over usual care.

Reading exercise: Consider usual-care and CBT comparisons separately. Explain why no clear difference does not establish definite equivalence.

Uphoff E, Ekers D, Robertson L, et al. Behavioural activation therapy for depression in adults. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. 2020;(7):CD013305.

Publication / DOIResearch card

2016 theoretical review · incentive-sensitization account

Is wanting a reward the same as enjoying it?

Selected for the theoretical background to wanting and liking. Compare it with the 2025 anhedonia review without assuming identical clinical patterns in depression and addiction.

Finding and limits

Berridge and Robinson link dopamine-related motivation systems to wanting. Their account allows intense wanting without increased pleasure.

Limit: This theoretical framework does not explain every cause of addiction; it is not a personal prediction or intervention trial.

Reading exercise: Identify testable predictions of a theoretical account and the experiments needed to evaluate them.

Berridge KC, Robinson TE. Liking, wanting, and the incentive-sensitization theory of addiction. American Psychologist. 2016;71(8):670–679.

Publication / DOIResearch card

2011 narrative review

Reading relapse as a process

Read as a bridge from Marlatt’s profile to research. This older narrative review traces relapse-prevention concepts; it does not cover all current interventions.

Finding and limits

The review covers Marlatt’s model and later developments, considering context, coping and interpretations together.

Limit: Not the whole current literature or an individual risk calculation.

Reading exercise: Mark model assumptions, research findings and practice interpretations separately.

Hendershot CS, Witkiewitz K, George WH, Marlatt GA. Relapse prevention for addictive behaviors. 2011;6:17.

Publication / DOIResearch cardHistorical background: Marlatt

Find a resource

20 curated resources, grouped by topic and format. Guides, research summaries and professional books serve different purposes.

20 resources shown

Research cards, reading workshop and glossary

Annotated reading lists by topic

A selected reading list, not a systematic search. Each entry includes purpose, level and access notes.

Depression

To study sensitivity analyses and distinguish no demonstrated difference from established equivalence.

Intermediate/advanced: conceptual and methodological reading · Record/DOI provided. Full-text access and reuse permission are not verified by this list.

P002-ARASTIRMA-002 · v01

Can action begin before mood improves?

Research question
Can action begin before mood improves?
Study type
Cochrane systematic review · 2020 · 53 studies, 5,495 adults
Sample
53 studies, 5,495 adults.
Comparison
Usual care, other psychotherapies and other controls.
Main finding
Behavioural activation is a structured psychotherapy approach supporting engagement in meaningful activities. The review suggests possible short-term benefit over usual care and no clear difference from CBT. This does not establish definite equivalence.
Limitations
In the full card
Source check date
15 October 2026 · Concept Atlas source check

To read PICO, odds ratios and evidence certainty in one example.

Intermediate: meta-analysis reading · Record/DOI provided. Full-text access and reuse permission are not verified by this list.

P002-ARASTIRMA-003 · v01

Can insomnia psychotherapy affect mood?

Research question
Can insomnia psychotherapy affect mood?
Study type
2024 systematic review and meta-analysis · 19 randomised trials, 4,808 adults
Sample
19 randomised trials, 4,808 adults.
Comparison
CBT-I and study control conditions.
Main finding
Among adults with depression and insomnia, cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) increased the likelihood of depression response compared with control conditions. Evidence certainty for this outcome was moderate.
Limitations
In the full card
Source check date
15 October 2026 · Concept Atlas source check

To consider anhedonia across wanting, pleasure and learning.

Intermediate/advanced: conceptual and methodological reading · Record/DOI provided. Full-text access and reuse permission are not verified by this list.

P002-ARASTIRMA-004 · v01

Why distinguish wanting from pleasure?

Research question
Why distinguish wanting from pleasure?
Study type
2025 clinically oriented narrative review
Sample
Narrative review; no single participant sample.
Comparison
No intervention arms; a conceptual synthesis.
Main finding
The review distinguishes wanting, experienced pleasure and learning in reward processing. Anhedonia may involve difficulties in some or several of these processes.
Limitations
In the full card
Source check date
15 October 2026 · Concept Atlas source check

Addiction

To discuss assumptions when translating habit constructs from animal experiments to humans.

Intermediate/advanced: conceptual and methodological reading · The atlas lists CC BY 4.0; check the original licence.

P002-ARASTIRMA-001 · v01

Similar mechanisms, the same diagnosis?

Research question
Similar mechanisms, the same diagnosis?
Study type
Meta-analysis of animal experiments and review of human studies
Sample
Animal-experiment meta-analysis; human studies reviewed separately. No combined participant count is supplied in this brief record.
Comparison
Habitual and goal-directed task conditions; experiments differ.
Main finding
This 2024 paper argues against treating habitual and goal-directed behaviour as two rigid categories. It distinguishes habit from compulsivity: automatic responding is not the same construct as persistence despite harmful consequences.
Limitations
In the full card
Source check date
15 October 2026 · Concept Atlas source check

To examine wanting and pleasure within a theoretical model.

Intermediate/advanced: conceptual and methodological reading · Record/DOI provided. Full-text access and reuse permission are not verified by this list.

P002-ARASTIRMA-005 · v01

Is wanting a reward the same as enjoying it?

Research question
Is wanting a reward the same as enjoying it?
Study type
2016 theoretical review · incentive-sensitization account
Sample
Theoretical review; no single participant sample.
Comparison
Wanting and pleasure processes, not a randomised intervention comparison.
Main finding
Berridge and Robinson link dopamine-related motivation systems to wanting. Their account allows intense wanting without increased pleasure.
Limitations
In the full card
Source check date
15 October 2026 · Concept Atlas source check

To examine changing definitions and the historical development of Marlatt’s framework; not a current review replacement.

Intermediate/advanced: conceptual and methodological reading · Record/DOI provided. Full-text access and reuse permission are not verified by this list.

P002-ARASTIRMA-006 · v01

Reading relapse as a process

Research question
Reading relapse as a process
Study type
2011 narrative review
Sample
Narrative review; no single participant sample.
Comparison
Models and research developments, not one intervention comparison.
Main finding
The review covers Marlatt’s model and later developments, considering context, coping and interpretations together.
Limitations
In the full card
Source check date
15 October 2026 · Concept Atlas source check

Where depression and addiction meet

Institutional introduction to joint assessment, not a randomised trial or meta-analysis; not presented as a research study. NIMH — Co-occurring disorders (2025)

Paper-reading workshop

Question and design

Sleep example: What are CBT-I outcomes in adults with depression and insomnia? Furukawa’s 2024 meta-analysis includes 19 randomised trials and 4,808 participants.

Interpret the outcome

For depression response: OR 2.28, 95% CI 1.67–3.12; moderate certainty. An odds ratio does not mean everyone improves twice as much.

Find the limit

Searches ended on 27 March 2024. Do not extend findings to every sleep difficulty; the intervention is structured, not general sleep advice.

Discussion question

How would different controls or follow-up change your interpretation? Look beyond the title to methods and limitations.

Guide to searching for sources

Combine concepts

Example starting query: (depression OR "depressive disorder") AND ("substance use disorder" OR addiction). OR combines alternatives; AND intersects concepts. This is not a completed systematic search.

Check MeSH and filters

Inspect query translation using Advanced/Search Details. Consider MeSH alongside free text; newer records may not yet be fully indexed.

Record the search

Record database, date, full query and filters. Distinguish abstract records from full text. A free-access filter narrows selection and is not a quality score.

Fictional case discussions

Fictional case: Sleep, mood and use

Deniz reports difficulty attending classes, changed sleep and increased alcohol use. Do not diagnose: what is missing about timeline, context and daily impact? Does co-occurrence show causation?

Example discussion response

Onset order and use pattern are unknown. Keep shared factors and alternative explanations open. A brief fictional account is not assessment; consider professional evaluation and coordination when needed.

Turkish/English glossary

Brief educational definitions, not standalone diagnostic criteria.

TurkishEnglishExplanation and source
UykuSleepOne night is not the whole story
KaçınmaAvoidanceA pause or a recurring withdrawal?
AlışkanlıkHabitRepetition alone is not addiction
AnhedoniAnhedoniaAre low mood, wanting and pleasure the same?
DopaminDopamineIs dopamine simply a happiness chemical?
Sürçme ve nüksLapse and relapseDoes one event define the whole process?
RuminasyonRuminationRumination involves returning repeatedly to distressing concerns. Repetition is not always unhelpful; processing style and context matter. Watkins (2008), Psychological Bulletin
AşermeCravingCraving can be experienced as an intense urge to use a substance. Experiencing an urge and acting on it are different events. US Surgeon General (2016), neurobiology chapter
PekiştirmeReinforcementA consequence increasing the future likelihood of behaviour. OpenStax Psychology 2e, §6.3
İkilemAmbivalenceCoexisting conflicting wishes or concerns about change. SAMHSA TIP 35 (2019), chapter 5
Eşlik eden bozukluklarCo-occurring disordersConditions occurring together, without assuming one-way causation. NIMH — Co-occurring disorders (2025)
Güven aralığıConfidence intervalHelps assess uncertainty in an estimate; not clinical importance by itself. Cochrane Handbook, chapter 15

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