Published online Nov 19, 2026. doi: 10.5498/wjp.123570
Revised: June 21, 2026
Accepted: August 10, 2026
Published online: November 19, 2026
Processing time: 160 Days and 23.1 Hours
Stereotype is a specific social cognitive schema that often leads to cognitive biases and prejudice, negatively impacting social interaction. Previous studies have focused almost exclusively on healthy populations, so it remains unclear how these processes unfold in major depressive disorder (MDD).
To examine the neural mechanisms of stereotype activation in MDD and diffe
Twenty-eight patients with MDD and 28 healthy controls enrolled in this study. All participants completed the gender stereotype task, with behavioral and electroencephalogram data recorded. We focused on analyzing behavioral data and event-related potential (ERP) components, including N170, N400, and P600. Furthermore, we analyzed the correlation between clinical features and ERP data in patients with MDD, with the false discovery rate correction applied.
Behaviorally, both patients with MDD and healthy control participants had significantly longer reaction times when processing stereotype-incongruent information than congruent information (all P < 0.05). The ERP results showed that both groups elicited higher N170 amplitudes when processing stereotype-incongruent information (all P < 0.05). Moreover, male participants exhibited larger N170 amplitudes than females when processing such incongruent information (all P < 0.05). The MDD group showed larger N400 amplitudes than healthy controls when processing stereotype-incongruent information (all P < 0.05). Additionally, correlation analysis between clinical characteristics and ERP data in the MDD group revealed that disease duration was positively correlated with N400 amplitude (female stereotype-male face; false discovery rate-adjusted P = 0.036).
Processing counter-stereotypical information may require greater cognitive resources, as reflected by an enhanced N170 effect, particularly in males. Patients with MDD may also need additional cognitive resources to integrate counter-stereotypical information, as reflected by an enhanced N400 effect, which appears to be more pronounced with longer illness duration.
Core Tip: This study combined the gender stereotype task paradigm with event-related potential technology to explore stereotype processing in patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) and whether there are different neural mechanisms between patients with MDD and healthy individuals. We found that processing counterstereotypical information may require greater cognitive resources, as reflected by an enhanced N170 effect, particularly in males. Patients with MDD may also need additional cognitive resources to integrate counter-stereotypical information, as reflected by an enhanced N400 effect, which appears to be more pronounced with longer illness duration.