LEARNED HELPLESSNESS IS THE LABEL APPLIED TO A PHENOMENON OBSERVED IN DOGS WHO WERE EXPOSED TO AND NOT ALLOWED TO ESCAPE FROM ELECTRIC SHOCK. LATER THE DOGS DID NOT ATTEMPT TO ESCAPE FROM THE SHOCK. STUDIES HAVE DEMONSTRATED THAT LEARNED HELPLESSNESS CAN BE PRODUCED IN A VARIETY OF SITUATIONS, WITH DIFFERENT TYPES OF UNCONTROLLABLE, AVERSIVE EVENTS, AND IN A VARIETY OF SPECIES (INCLUDING HUMAN BEINGS). IT HAS BEEN HYPOTHESIZED THAT THE BEHAVIORAL SYMPTOMS OF LEARNED HELPLESSNESS--DEFICITS IN RESPONSE INITIATION AND IN ASSOCIATING REINFORCEMENT WITH RESPONDING--RESULT FROM LEARNING THAT REINFORCEMENT AND RESPONDING ARE INDEPENDENT. THREE GROUPS, EACH INCLUDING BOTH DEPRESSED AND NONDEPRESSED STUDENTS (AS DETERMINED BY SCORES ON A DEPRESSION TEST) WERE EXPOSED EITHER TO ESCAPABLE NOISE, TO INESCAPABLE NOISE, OR TO NO NOISE. THE SUBJECT WERE THEN GIVEN AN ANAGRAM SOLUTION TEST. DEPRESSED-NO NOISE SUBJECTS WERE MUCH POORER AT SOLVING THE ANAGRAM PROBLEMS THAN WERE NONDEPRESSED-NO NOISE SUBJECTS. FOR NONDEPRESSED SUBJECTS IMPAIRMENT RESULTED FROM INESCAPABLE NOISE BUT NOT FROM ESCAPABLE NOISE. INESCAPABLE NOISE DID NOT INCREASE IMPAIRMENT IN DEPRESSED SUBJECTS. THESE FINDINGS SUPPORT A LEARNED HELPLESSNESS MODEL OF DEPRESSION, IN WHICH A BELIEF IN THE INDEPENDENCE OF RESPONDING AND REINFORCEMENT IS VIEWED AS CENTRAL TO THE ETIOLOGY, SYMPTOMS, AND CURE OF REACTIVE DEPRESSION. SUPPORTING DATA AND A LIST OF REFERENCES ARE INCLUDED. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT MODIFIED--LKM)