The Course of Depressive Symptoms in Men From Early Adolescence to Young Adulthood: Identifying Latent Trajectories and Early Predictors.

Heterogeneity in the longitudinal course of depressive symptoms was studied through the use of general growth mixture modeling for young men in the Oregon Youth Study (N=206), who ranged in age from 15 to 24 years. Four trajectory classes were identified: the very-low, the moderate-decreasing, the high-decreasing, and the high-persistent classes. The 3 lowest classes differed primarily quantitatively with the initial level or mean level across time being the major determinant of class differences, whereas the high-persistent class appeared qualitatively different in terms of long-term developmental trends and variation. Findings from univariate and multivariate analyses revealed specific effects of childhood, parental, contextual, and individual risk factors on the class membership as well as on the growth within each trajectory class. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Depressive symptoms and cigarette smoking among middle adolescents: Prospective associations and intrapersonal and interpersonal influences.

Using data from a 4-wave longitudinal study with a school-based sample of 1,218 middle adolescents, the authors investigated the directionality (e.g., unidirectionality and bidirectionality) of the prospective relationship between depressive symptoms and cigarette use within the context of potential confounding variables and common and unique intrapersonal and interpersonal predictors. Findings indicated that serious and persistent depressive symptoms were prospective predictors of increased cigarette use across time, after controlling for baseline levels of smoking. Similarly. heavy and persistent smoking prospectively predicted increases in depressive symptoms. Intrapersonal and interpersonal predictors of crosstemporal changes in depressive symptoms and cigarette use were more unique than common. Latent growth curve modeling indicated a quadratic trend in adolescent cigarette smoking across time with an initial acceleration followed by a deceleration, though there was substantial intraindividual variation in individual trajectories. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Adapting Psychotherapy to Meet the Needs of Adults With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.

Requests for the assessment and treatment of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) among adult patients are on the rise. The findings from longitudinal research indicate that clinically significant symptoms persist into adulthood for many children diagnosed with ADHD. Many other patients' symptoms are not identified until they are in active treatment for other complaints in adulthood. Thus, psychotherapists are increasingly likely to encounter adult patients with ADHD-related issues. However, the same core symptoms of inattention, impulsivity, and hyperactivity that create functional problems in patients' lives also interfere with the effectiveness of psychotherapy. The aim of this article is to summarize the accumulated clinical and empirical wisdom about how to effectively adapt psychotherapy to meet the needs of adult patients with ADHD. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Health stresses and depressive symptomatology in the elderly: The importance of health engagement control strategies.

The study presents cross-sectional (N=127) and longitudinal (n=111) analyses examining relations between health engagement control strategies (HECSs), depressive symptoms, and health stresses in elderly individuals. HECS was measured as people's behavioral and cognitive investments toward attaining health goals. HECS was related to low levels of depressive symptoms, particularly among people experiencing acute physical symptoms. Moreover, HECS predicted reduction of depressive symptoms over time, and depressive symptomatology predicted negative change in HECS. The findings show that active investments of HECSs significantly moderate the negative affective consequences of health threats. Individuals who are characterized by low levels of HECS and high levels of depressive symptoms may be at increased risk of accelerated decline in their physical and mental health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Differential social comparison processes in women with and without eating disorder symptoms.

On the basis of predictions from social comparison theory (L. Festinger, 1954) and informed by findings from the social comparison and eating disorder literatures, hypotheses were tested regarding the social comparison behaviors of women with eating disorder symptoms and their asymptomatic peers. Results indicated differentiating social-cognitive processes for these groups. First, a greater tendency to engage in everyday social comparison predicted the presence of eating disorder symptoms. Second, social comparisons of one's own body to images of other women's bodies using a range of shapes and sizes also differentiated these 2 groups, with more self-defeating self-appraisals predicting the presence of eating disorder symptoms. Finally, self-esteem partially mediated the relationship between body-related social comparisons and eating disorder symptom status. Results are discussed in terms of their implications for research and practice. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Group cognitive-behavioral therapy for generalized anxiety disorder: Treatment outcome and long-term follow-up.

A recently developed cognitive-behavioral treatment for generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) targets intolerance of uncertainty by the reevaluation of positive beliefs about worry, problem-solving training, and cognitive exposure. As previous studies have established the treatment's efficacy when delivered individually, the present study tests the treatment in a group format as a way to enhance its cost-benefit ratio. A total of 52 GAD patients received 14 sessions of cognitive-behavioral therapy in small groups of 4 to 6 participants. A wait-list control design was used, and standardized clinician ratings and self-report questionnaires assessed GAD symptoms, intolerance of uncertainty, anxiety, depression, and social adjustment. Results show that the treatment group, relative to the wait-list group, had greater posttest improvement on all dependent variables and that treated participants made further gains over the 2-year follow-up phase of the study. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Depressive Symptoms and Marital Satisfaction: Within-Subject Associations and the Moderating Effects of Gender and Neuroticism.

Given the emphasis on within-subject associations between depression and marital quality in recent theory and practice, this study was undertaken with three goals: to examine within-subject associations between depressive symptoms and marital quality over time, to address gender differences in the magnitude and direction of these associations, and to determine whether neuroticism moderates the strength of these associations. A total of 164 newly wed couples provided 8 waves of data over 4 years of marriage. Hierarchical linear modeling confirmed the existence of bidirectional within-subject associations between marital satisfaction and depressive symptoms. Gender differences were rarely significant. Although neuroticism strengthened the effect of marital distress on symptoms as predicted, it weakened the effect of symptoms on marital distress among husbands. The theoretical and practical implications of these findings are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Body Image and Eating Disturbances Across Ethnic Groups: More Similarities Than Differences.

Sociocultural models of eating pathology posit that ethnic minority groups should show fewer eating disturbances than Whites. Thus, the authors tested whether there were ethnic differences in eating disorder symptoms and risk factors for eating pathology and whether the relations between risk factors and eating pathology differed across ethnic groups, with data from adolescent and adult females (N = 785). Only 1 of the 14 tests of main effect differences between ethnic groups was significant and none of the 49 tests of whether ethnicity moderated the relations of risk factors to eating pathology were significant. Findings provide little support for the hypothesized ethnic differences in eating disturbances and suggest that ethnic minority groups have reached parity with Whites in this domain. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

PTSD Arousal and Depression Symptoms Associated With Increased Right-Sided Parietal EEG Asymmetry.

Researchers have proposed that depression and particular types of anxiety are associated with unique patterns of regional brain activation. The authors examined the relationship among posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, and depressive symptoms and frontal, temporal, and parietal EEG alpha asymmetry in female Vietnam War nurse veterans. The results indicate that PTSD arousal symptoms are associated with increased right-sided parietal activation. However, the combination of arousal, depression, and their interaction explain more than twice the variance in parietal asymmetry compared with arousal alone. The results support the contention that the association between anxiety and right-sided posterior activation is specific to the anxious arousal subtype. These findings underscore the importance of isolating, both theoretically and statistically, emotional subcomponents in studies of regional brain activation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)