School-based prevention of depression and anxiety symptoms in early adolescence: A pilot of a parent intervention component.

Previous studies suggest that school-based cognitive-behavioral interventions can reduce and prevent depressive symptoms in youth. This pilot study investigated the effectiveness of a cognitive-behavioral depression prevention program, the Penn Resiliency Program for Children and Adolescents (the PRP-CA), when combined with a parent intervention component. Forty-four middle school students and their parents were randomly assigned to the enhanced PRP (the PRP-CA plus parent program) or control conditions. Students completed measures of depression and anxiety symptoms at baseline and 2 weeks, 6 months, and 1 year after the intervention ended. The combined version of the PRP significantly reduced symptoms of depression and anxiety during the follow-up period. Children assigned to the intervention condition were less likely than controls to report clinical levels of anxiety symptoms. Findings suggest that school-based cognitive-behavioral interventions that include parents may prevent depression and anxiety symptoms in early adolescence. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Differential relations of depression and social anxiety symptoms to the facets of extraversion/positive emotionality.

Previous research has shown that both depression and social anxiety—2 facets of internalizing psychopathology—are characterized by low levels of extraversion/positive emotionality (E/PE). However, little is known about the relations of the facets of E/PE with the symptoms of depression and social anxiety. This study utilized multiple measures of each facet of E/PE, as well as depression and social anxiety symptoms. Self-report data were collected from large samples of college students and psychiatric outpatients. Separate factor analyses in each sample revealed a 4-factor structure of E/PE consisting of Sociability, Positive Emotionality, Ascendance, and Fun-Seeking. Structural equation modeling revealed that, after controlling for the higher order internalizing factor and the overlap among the E/PE facets, social anxiety was broadly related to all 4 facets of E/PE, whereas depression was strongly related to only low positive emotionality. Implications for hierarchical models of personality and psychopathology, assessment and treatment, and etiological models are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Perfectionism, negative social feedback, and interpersonal rumination in depression and social anxiety.

The current study investigated the associations among trait perfectionism, perfectionistic self-presentation, negative social feedback, interpersonal rumination, depressive symptoms, and social anxiety. New measures of negative social feedback and interpersonal rumination were used to evaluate their relevance to the social aspects of perfectionism and their roles in distress. A sample of 155 undergraduate students completed the Multidimensional Perfectionism Scale, the Perfectionistic Self-Presentation Scale, the Social Feedback Questionnaire, Rumination About an Interpersonal Offense, and measures of depressive symptoms and social anxiety. The results confirmed that socially prescribed perfectionism and perfectionistic self-presentation were associated significantly with negative social feedback and rumination following interpersonal events (i.e., being hurt, humiliated, mistreated). Also, depressive symptoms and social anxiety were associated significantly with negative social feedback, interpersonal rumination, trait perfectionism, and perfectionistic self-presentation. Additional analyses indicated that negative social feedback and interpersonal rumination mediated the links between components of the perfectionism construct and distress. Overall, our findings suggest that self-reported receipt of frequent negative feedback from others and engaging in rumination about an interpersonal event play important roles in the distress experienced by certain individuals with high levels of perfectionism. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Developmental trajectories of anxiety symptoms among boys across early and middle childhood.

This study examined the developmental trajectory of anxiety symptoms among 290 boys and evaluated the association of trajectory groups with child and family risk factors and children's internalizing disorders. Anxiety symptoms were measured using maternal reports from the Child Behavior Checklist (T. M. Achenbach, 1991, 1992) for boys between the ages of 2 and 10. A group-based trajectory analysis revealed 4 distinct trajectories in the development of anxiety symptoms: low, low increasing, high declining, and high-increasing trajectories. Child shy temperament tended to differentiate between initial high and low groups, whereas maternal negative control and maternal depression were associated with increasing trajectories and elevated anxiety symptoms in middle childhood. Follow-up analyses to diagnoses of preadolescent depression and/or anxiety disorders revealed different patterns on the basis of trajectory group membership. The results are discussed in terms of the mechanisms of risk factors and implications for early identification and prevention. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A latent growth examination of fear development in infancy: Contributions of maternal depression and the risk for toddler anxiety.

Growth modeling was used to examine the developmental trajectory of infant temperamental fear with maternal fear and depressive symptoms as predictors of infant fearfulness and change in infant fear predicting toddler anxiety symptoms. In Study 1, a sample of 158 mothers reported their own depressive symptoms and fear when their children were 4 months of age and infant fearfulness at 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 months. Maternal symptoms of depression predicted steeper increases in infant fearfulness over time (z = 2.06, p z = 2.32, p z = 1.88, p z = 2.30, p z = 2.08, p     

Race-ethnic inequality and psychological distress: Depressive symptoms from adolescence to young adulthood.

Social inequality is well established in the mental health of race-ethnic groups, but little is known about this disparity from adolescence to young adulthood. This study examined differences in trajectories of depressive symptoms across 4 race-ethnic groups (Whites, Blacks, Hispanics, and Asians) using 3 waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Latent trajectory analyses showed race-ethnic variations among both females and males. Stressors were significantly related to depressive symptoms for all study members, but they accounted for symptom trajectories only among Black males and minority females. Persistent differences in trajectories for Blacks and Whites showed parallel slopes that did not converge over time. Neither background characteristics nor social resources (i.e., social support) altered this gap. However, social support represents a potential equalizer of these race-ethnic differences, owing to the ubiquitous nature of its protective effects. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Attachment in individuals with social anxiety disorder: The relationship among adult attachment styles, social anxiety, and depression.

Despite their apparent implications for social functioning, adult attachment styles have never been specifically explored among persons with social anxiety disorder. In the current study, a cluster analysis of the Revised Adult Attachment Scale (N. L. Collins, 1996) revealed that 118 patients with social anxiety (58.6% males and 41.4% females, mean age 32.43 yrs) were best represented by anxious and secure attachment style clusters. Members of the anxious attachment cluster exhibited more severe social anxiety and avoidance, greater depression, greater impairment, and lower life satisfaction than members of the secure attachment cluster. This pattern was replicated in a separate sample of 56 patients and compared with the pattern found in 36 control participants. Social anxiety mediated the association between attachment insecurity and depression. Findings are discussed in the context of their relevance to the etiology, maintenance, and cognitive-behavioral treatment of social anxiety disorder. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Aging and symptoms of anxiety and depression: Structural invariance of the tripartite model.

Negative affect measures were evaluated in a cross-sectional community sample of adults aged 18-93 (N = 335) to examine the structure of neuroticism, anxiety, and depressive symptoms in young, middle, and older adult cohorts. Structural equation modeling was used to contrast 3 nested models: a 1-factor general distress model; a 2-factor high negative-low positive affect model; and a 3-factor "tripartite model" reflecting a higher order Negative Affect factor that is common to depression and anxiety problems and 2 lower order factors, Low Positive Affect (mostly specific to depression) and Arousal (specific to anxiety/panic). As expected, the tripartite model fit best for all age groups. Further, multigroup analyses indicated age invariance for the tripartite model, suggesting the model can be effectively applied with older populations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Aging and negative affect: The rise and fall and rise of anxiety and depression symptoms.

The relationship between aging and negative affect is dynamic and complex. Although prior studies have often cited lower prevalence rates of anxiety and mood disorders among older individuals, these studies may miss the dynamic relationship between symptoms and aging. To evaluate a nonlinear model of the relationship between aging and negative affect, the author examined measures of neuroticism, anxiety, and depression symptoms in a cross-sectional, community sample (N = 335), ages 18 to 93. Results indicated a curvilinear relationship, with mean symptom levels increasing during early adulthood (until the mid-30s) and then showing a small decline until older adulthood (the mid-70s), when symptoms again increase with age. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Are anxiety and depression just as stable as personality during late adolescence? Results from a three-year longitudinal latent variable study.

Although considerable evidence shows that affective symptoms and personality traits demonstrate moderate to high relative stabilities during adolescence and early adulthood, there has been little work done to examine differential stability among these constructs or to study the manner in which the stability of these constructs is expressed. The present study used a three-year longitudinal design in an adolescent/young adult sample to examine the stability of depression symptoms, social phobia symptoms, specific phobia symptoms, neuroticism, and extraversion. When considering one-, two-, and three-year durations, anxiety and personality stabilities were generally similar and typically greater than the stability of depression. Comparison of various representations of a latent variable trait-state-occasion (TSO) model revealed that whereas the full TSO model was the best representation for depression, a trait stability model was the most parsimonious of the best-fitting models for the anxiety and personality constructs. Over three years, the percentages of variance explained by the trait component for the anxiety and personality constructs (73–84%) were significantly greater than that explained by the trait component for depression (46%). These findings indicate that symptoms of depression are more episodic in nature, whereas symptoms of anxiety are more similar to personality variables in their expression of stability. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mediation of changes in anxiety and depression during treatment of social phobia.

To investigate the interactive process of changes in social anxiety and depression during treatment, the authors assessed weekly symptoms in 66 adult outpatients with social phobia (social anxiety disorder) who participated in cognitive- behavioral group therapy. Multilevel mediational analyses revealed that improvements in social anxiety mediated 91% of the improvements in depression over time. Conversely, decreases in depression only accounted for 6% of the decreases in social anxiety over time. Changes in social anxiety fully mediated changes in depression during the course of treatment. The theoretical and clinical implications of these findings for the relationship between anxiety and depression are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Emotional self-disclosure and emotional avoidance: Relations with symptoms of depression and anxiety.

Research suggests that individuals with heightened symptoms of mood and anxiety disorders engage in diminished emotional disclosure. On the basis of emotion regulation theories, the authors hypothesized that this symptom–disclosure relationship would be mediated by the avoidance of emotional experience and expression. In Study 1, college students (N = 831) completed measures of depression and anxiety symptoms, measures of tendencies to avoid emotional expression, and measures of tendencies to self-disclose distress. Structural equation modeling revealed that anhedonic depression and anxious arousal were associated with lessened emotional self-disclosure tendencies as mediated by avoidance of emotional expression. In Study 2, participants (N = 153) completed new measures of depression and anxiety symptoms, reflected on the most significant emotional event experienced during the past week, and rated their avoidance of emotion about the event and their self-disclosure of the event. Depression (but not anxiety) symptoms were negatively related to the disclosure of a specific event, but avoidance of emotional experience did not mediate this depression–disclosure relationship. These findings extend emotion dysregulation theory and suggest that depressive symptoms in particular are associated with reduced emotional disclosure. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Male gender role conflict, depression, and anxiety: Clarification and generalizability to women.

The purpose of this study was (a) to determine whether the relationship between male gender role conflict variables and mental health generalizes to women and (b) to investigate other aspects of social gender roles and mental health. An adaptation of the Gender Role Conflict Scale (I. M. O'Neil, B. J. Helms, R. K. Gable. L. David, & L. S. Wrightsman, 1986) and measures of depression and anxiety were administered to male and female college students. Men showed more restricted emotionality. more restricted affection, greater appropriate and inappropriate success, and more restricted affection, particularly for other men; there were no gender differences related to the conflict between work and family. However, for the most part these variables were related to depression and anxiety in similar ways in men and women. The major predictor of depression and anxiety for men and women was conflict between work and family. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Introduction to special section: Parental depression and distress: Implications for development in infancy, childhood, and adolescence.

Five years ago, a special section on "Developmental Psychopathology in Children of Depressed Mothers" was published in this journal (see Vol. 26, pp. 3-67). The present special section deals also with this topic and includes seven empirical articles. It is the product of several successful journal submissions that occurred in relatively close succession. The articles were not specifically targeted beforehand to be broadly representative of research in this domain. Work from some other excellent research programs is not included. Thus, although the content of this special section cannot be viewed as a comprehensive cross-section of current research directions, it does provide an occasion for readers to begin to assess continuities and changes in this research domain. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predictors of depressive symptom trajectories in mothers of preterm or low birth weight infants.

Predictors of maternal depression trajectories were examined longitudinally in families with an infant born preterm or at a low birth weight. A total of 181 mother–infant dyads enrolled in the study before the infant’s neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) discharge. Maternal depressive symptoms were assessed at 5 timepoints, and contextual variables and infant risks were assessed at NICU discharge. Hierarchical linear models revealed that mothers who experienced more risk factors reported more depressive symptoms just before their infant’s NICU discharge and showed less decline in depressive symptoms in the months immediately following the child’s birth. Although cumulative risks predicted depression trajectories, this effect appeared driven by maternal and family sociodemographic risks rather than infant risks. Addition of family support as a covariate in the multilevel models with a subsample of families revealed that social support and depression covaried across time. However, most of the findings regarding the association between risk and depression remained consistent, whereas the effects of maternal race and multiple birth were slightly attenuated. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Family functioning in families of children with anxiety disorders.

The authors examined maternal and paternal reports of family functioning and their relationship with child outcomes as well as the association between anxiety and depression in family members and family functioning. Results reveal that maternal and paternal reports of family functioning were both significantly associated with worse child outcomes, including child anxiety disorder (AD) severity, anxiety symptoms, and child global functioning. Maternal and paternal anxiety and depression predicted worse family functioning, whereas child report of anxiety and depression did not. Parents of children with ADs reported significantly worse family functioning and behavior control, but only fathers reported worse problem solving and affective involvement compared with fathers of children with no psychological disorders. Findings from this study suggest that paternal as well as maternal anxiety and depression play a role in worse family functioning in children with ADs and that unhealthier family functioning is associated with worse child outcomes in this population. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Latent variable analysis of coping, anxiety/depression, and somatic symptoms in adolescents with chronic pain.

Reports of adolescents' coping with recurrent pain, symptoms of anxiety/depression, and somatic complaints were obtained from a sample of 164 adolescents with recurrent abdominal pain and their parents. Confirmatory factor analysis revealed that coping consisted of 3 nonorthogonal factors: Primary Control Engagement Coping (problem solving, emotional expression, and emotional regulation), Secondary Control Engagement Coping (positive thinking, cognitive restructuring, acceptance, and distraction), and Disengagement Coping (denial, avoidance, and wishful thinking). Structural equation modeling using latent variables revealed that secondary control engagement coping predicted lower levels of anxiety/depression symptoms and somatic complaints, and disengagement coping was related to higher levels of anxiety/depression and somatic complaints. Implications for understanding child and adolescent coping with pain are highlighted. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Universal-based prevention of syndromal and subsyndromal social anxiety: A randomized controlled study.

This article reports results from a universal preventive program aimed at (a) reducing social anxiety and (b) preventing the development of syndromal social anxiety among a population-based sample of older children and young adolescents during a 1-year period. Pupils (N = 1,748) from 2 counties were cluster randomized to either an intervention or a control condition. In the intervention condition, the Norwegian Universal Preventive Program for Social Anxiety (NUPP-SA)—which educates pupils, parents/guardians, teachers/school staff, and county health workers—was administered. The results indicate that NUPP-SA had a significant specific intervention effect for reducing social anxiety in the total sample as well as among the syndromal subjects. Further, significantly fewer subjects from the intervention county developed syndromal social anxiety during the 1-year period, thus showing a prevention effect. The results demonstrate the value of an intervention specifically aimed at reducing social anxiety and preventing the development of syndromal social anxiety among young people. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Efficacy of self-administered treatments for depression and anxiety.

Self-administered treatments (SATs) are widely used by the general public and mental health professionals. Previous reviews of the efficacy of SATs have included under this category interventions for nonclinical problems, group interventions, and interventions involving significant amounts of therapist contact. The efficacy of SATs for clinical levels of depression and anxiety with minimal therapeutic contact was examined by meta-analyzing 24 studies. The results show large effects for SATs when compared with no-treatment control groups (d=1.00). However, unlike previous meta-analyses that found nonsignificant differences between SATs and therapist-administered treatments, in this sample SATs resulted in significantly poorer outcomes (d=-0.31). Some differences in effect size were observed between the clinical targets of depression and anxiety. However, there were high correlations between clinical target, methodological quality of the study, and amount of contact. This makes it impossible to determine whether the observed differences could be explained by the nature of the disorders, methodological quality, or the amount of contact with a member of the research team. The implications of the findings for the clinical use of SATs and for future research are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Family processes as pathways from income to young children's development.

A variety of family processes have been hypothesized to mediate associations between income and young children's development. Maternal emotional distress, parental authoritative and authoritarian behavior (videotaped mother-child interactions), and provision of cognitively stimulating activities (Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment [HOME] scales) were examined as possible mediators in a sample of 493 White and African American low-birth-weight premature infants who were followed from birth through age 5. Cognitive ability was assessed by standardized test, and child behavior problems by maternal report, when the children were 3 and 5 years of age. As expected, family income was associated with child outcomes. The provision of stimulating experiences in the home mediated the relation between family income and both children's outcomes; maternal emotional distress and parenting practices mediated the relation between income and children's behavior problems. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)