Intergenerational transmission of depression: a launch and grow model of change across adolescence

The present study tested a "launch-and-grow" type of cascade model in which an earlier risk factor (e.g., exposure to maternal depression by age 12) was hypothesized to predict several risk processes during development (e.g., stress, family relationships, self-worth [SW]), which then set the course for the growth of children's depressive symptoms over time. Participants were 240 mothers and children (mean age = 11.87 years, SD = 0.57) who were evaluated annually across 6 years. The Structured Clinical Interview for DSM diagnoses was used to assess mothers' psychiatric history; 185 mothers had had a mood disorder and 55 mothers were lifetime free of psychiatric diagnoses. At each assessment, mothers completed measures of their current level of depressive symptoms and stressful life events; adolescents completed measures about their perceptions of the family environment and their SW; and clinicians rated adolescents' level of depressive symptoms based on separate interviews with the adolescent and mother. Latent growth curve analyses revealed that history of maternal depression significantly predicted the intercepts of the growth trajectories of adolescents' depressive symptoms, mothers' current depressive symptoms, stressful life events, family environment, and adolescents' SW. The intercepts of each of these variables then predicted the trajectory (i.e., slope) of the growth of adolescents' depressive symptoms across the 6 years of the study. These results were consistent with the hypothesized model of maternal depression launching a set of risk factors, which in turn predict the growth of depressive symptoms during adolescence. Implications for interventions aimed at preventing depression in at-risk youth are discussed.     

Stepping Up,Sticking Together: Military Adolescents’ Support of Their Civilian Parents and Concurrent Depression Symptoms

The purposes of this study were to assess the ways adolescents in active-duty military families provide emotional and instrumental support to civilian mothers and to investigate the implications of such support for their own symptoms of depression. Eighty adolescents from active-duty military families provided self-report ratings of emotional and instrumental support rendered to their civilian mothers. Mother–adolescent dyads engaged in a 10-min discussion of military experiences, which was coded for adolescents’ emotional validation of their mothers. Path analyses showed that adolescents who provided more instrumental support and showed more emotional validation reported fewer symptoms of depression. However, adolescents’ instrumental support to the mother was not inversely associated with their depression symptoms when the mothers reported high depression symptoms. Recent military demands did not moderate associations between adolescent support and depression symptoms. In this, the first study to our knowledge assessing youth-to-parent support provision among military adolescents, results suggest that emotional validation and instrumental support given at will by adolescents to their civilian mothers are associated with lower levels of adolescent depressive symptoms. Results also underscore the impact of maternal depression on family processes and emphasize the importance of careful assessment of support processes within military families.     

The role of child gender,problem behaviors,and the family environment on maternal depressive symptoms: findings from mothers of substance abusing runaway adolescents

This study examined the relation between maternal depressive symptoms and adolescents' problem behaviors, moderated by adolescent gender, as well as the association between maternal depressive symptoms and the family environment characteristics above and beyond child variables. Data were collected from 137 mothers of runaway adolescents with alcohol and/or substance abuse problems. Results showed that both internalizing and externalizing problem behaviors of adolescent girls, as opposed to problem behaviors of boys, were significantly associated with maternal depressive symptoms. In addition, higher family cohesion was significantly related to lower maternal depressive symptoms even after controlling for adolescent problem behaviors. However, no significant relationship was found between family conflict and maternal depressive symptoms. These findings indicate that both adolescents' problem behaviors and mothers' perceptions of the family environment are associated with maternal depressive symptoms, highlighting the potential utility of the family systems theoretical framework for understanding and intervening mothers' emotional problems in the family context. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Maternal Depression,Parenting, and Youth Depressive Symptoms: Mediation and Moderation in a Short-Term Longitudinal Study

Although multiple studies find that offspring of depressed mothers are at risk for depressive disorders, there is uncertainty about the specific mechanisms that are at work—particularly with respect to modifiable factors that might be targeted for early intervention. The present work examines that parenting behaviors may operate as mediators, moderators, or independent influences on the development of youth depressive symptoms. One hundred one mothers and their early adolescent children participated in positive and negative interaction tasks. Maternal and youth self-reports of youth depressive symptoms were collected at baseline, 9-month, and 18-month assessments. Maternal history of depression was significantly associated with maternal-reported, but not youth self-reported, depressive symptomatology. Maternal positive and negative interaction behaviors in positive contexts were associated with higher youth self-reported depressive symptoms. Maternal positive interaction behaviors in positive contexts and maternal negative interactive behaviors in conflict contexts were associated with higher youth self-reported depressive symptoms. We found no evidence for maternal interaction behaviors serving as a mediator and little evidence of maternal interaction behaviors serving as a moderator of the relationship between maternal and offspring depression. Low maternal positive engagement tended to be more consistently associated with maternal- and self-reported youth depressive symptoms. The present findings suggest that characteristics of mother–child interactions that are associated with youth depressive symptomatology are pertinent to youth with and without a mother with a history of depression.     

The contribution of peers to monthly variation in adolescent depressed mood: a short-term longitudinal study with time-varying predictors

This study examined peer predictors of variation and growth in depressed mood among high-risk adolescents, using child and parent reports of monthly symptoms. One hundred seventy-six parents and their 10- to 14-year-old children separately took part in a series of up to nine monthly interviews. Multilevel growth models examined both time-varying peer predictors of parent and child reports of the child's depressive symptoms, controlling for age, gender, and treatment status. Deviant peer affiliation significantly predicted elevated depressive symptoms in the monthly child-report of depressed mood, especially for younger adolescents. Children's level of delinquency was significantly related to parent-reported depressive symptoms, and to child-reported symptoms in older adolescents only. As expected, depressed mood was higher for girls and more prevalent among older adolescents. The results suggest that peer processes may be linked in time to the development of depression, especially among high-risk adolescents.     

Adolescents’ and Best Friend’s Depressive Symptoms and Conflict Management: Intraindividual and Interpersonal Processes Over Time

This 6-year longitudinal study examined the relation between 3 conflict management styles (i.e., problem solving, conflict engagement, and compliance) and depressive symptoms in adolescent–best friend relationships. Participants were 479 Dutch adolescents and their best friend who reported annually on depressive symptoms and conflict management styles toward each other. Bidirectional effects between conflict management styles and depressive symptoms were studied both within adolescents (intraindividual) and between adolescent best friends (interpersonal). A positive interpersonal effect of depressive symptoms of one dyad member on depressive symptoms of the other member was found. Similarly, higher positive problem solving and conflict engagement of one dyad member predicted respectively higher problem solving and conflict engagement of the other dyad member. Adolescents who reported more depressive symptoms reported more conflict engagement and compliance over time. In addition, for boys, higher levels of depressive symptoms of one dyad member were related to more problem solving by the other member over time. The current study contributed to the literature by showing that depressive symptoms and conflict management are related constructs in adolescents and that both intrapersonal and interpersonal processes contribute to this relation.     

Can Mother–Daughter Communication Buffer Adolescent Risk for Mental Health Problems Associated With Maternal Depressive Symptoms?

The current study sought to test whether higher quality mother–daughter communication would buffer associations between maternal depressive symptoms and girls’ internalizing and externalizing psychopathology symptoms among urban African American girls across a 12-month period. One hundred ninety-four treatment-seeking urban African American adolescent girls, ages 12–16, and their mothers participated in the study. Every 6 months (for up to 3 assessments), daughters reported on their internalizing and externalizing symptoms, mothers reported on their depressive symptoms, and both mothers and daughters reported on the quality of their dyadic communication. Daughters additionally reported on the extent to which they felt accepted by their mothers at each assessment. Results of multilevel modeling revealed that quality of communication significantly interacted with maternal depressive symptoms to predict externalizing and internalizing symptoms in daughters, such that the risk associated with maternal depressive symptoms was fully buffered for daughters in high-quality communication dyads. Secondary analyses demonstrated that these patterns of results were not accounted for by higher levels of social status or maternal acceptance. Drawing on a vulnerable and understudied population of urban African American adolescent girls, this work suggests that family communication may contribute to important intergenerational psychopathology transmission processes, above and beyond more general features of the family environment.     

Physiological linkage and affective dynamics in dyadic interactions between adolescents and their mothers

This study examined physiological linkage (specifically, linkage in respiratory sinus arrhythmia; RSA) between parents and youth (aged 11–17) across conflict and fun activity discussion tasks. We also examined whether observed, momentary negative affect or parental depressive symptoms, would moderate patterns of RSA linkage across the interaction tasks. RSA linkage was assessed using a multilevel actor–partner interdependence model (APIM). Participants were 59 mother–adolescent dyads, including mothers with or without clinically significant depressive symptoms. Both mothers and teens evidenced stable RSA over time (actor effect), although the stability of maternal RSA was moderated by maternal depression, with maternal depressive symptoms related to slower RSA return to baseline. There was a significant partner influence on youth RSA, with maternal RSA positively related to subsequent youth RSA. However, this effect was moderated by maternal depression and maternal negative affect (NA), with low maternal depression/low maternal NA related to dyadic synchrony, whereas high depression or high NA led to attenuation of this relationship. Results demonstrate the importance of understanding the dynamic and complex nature of family interactions in the context of depression.     

Parental support,internalizing symptoms,perceived health status,and quality of life in adolescents with congenital heart disease: influences and reciprocal effects

Caring for adolescents with congenital heart disease requires attention to physical health but also to psychosocial functioning. Identifying how such psychosocial variables influence one another over time is important for designing health care strategies. The present study examined how depressive symptoms, loneliness, paternal and maternal support, and quality of life predicted one another. A total of 429 mid- to late adolescents with congenital heart disease (53.4 % boys) participated in a three-wave longitudinal study. Cross-lagged analyses indicated that depressive symptoms and loneliness mutually reinforced one another over time and led to relative decreases in quality of life. Paternal- and not so much maternal-support predicted relative decreases in depressive symptoms and loneliness and relative increases in quality of life. Maternal and paternal support, in turn, were negatively predicted by previous levels of adolescent depressive symptoms. In sum, important temporal sequences were uncovered potentially providing information for prevention and intervention targeting psychosocial functioning in adolescents with congenital heart disease.     

Depressed adolescents of depressed and nondepressed mothers: tests of an interpersonal impairment hypothesis

Two groups of depressed youngsters were compared. From an interpersonal perspective, it was hypothesized that depressed adolescents of depressed mothers would have significantly more interpersonal dysfunction than depressed youngsters of nondepressed mothers. In a large community sample of youth and their families, 65 depressed offspring of women with histories of a major depressive episode or dysthymia were compared with 45 depressed offspring of never-depressed women. As predicted, after controlling for current symptoms and family social status variables, depressed offspring of depressed mothers displayed significantly more negative interpersonal behaviors and cognitions compared with depressed offspring of nondepressed mothers, but they did not differ on academic performance. Implications concerning mechanisms, course, and consequences of different forms of adolescent depression are presented.     

Maternal age and depressive symptoms in a low‐income sample

In this study, depressive symptoms of 2,011 European‐American, African‐American, and Latina low‐income mothers at approximately 14 months after birth of the child were examined. Maternal age was used as a predictor of depressive symptoms. Overall, 31.9% of mothers were classified as depressed using the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale. Younger mothers tended to have more depressive symptoms among European‐American mothers only. Latina mothers had fewer depressive symptoms than African‐American and European‐American mothers. Number of children 5 years and under in the home was positively related to depressive symptoms. In addition, mothers with higher levels of self‐mastery reported fewer symptoms of depression. Implications for preventing maternal depressive symptoms are discussed. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

The relationship of prenatal alcohol exposure and the postnatal environment to child depressive symptoms

OBJECTIVE: This study examined the association between prenatal alcohol exposure and child depressive symptoms, and the mediating effects of maternal and child characteristics. METHODS: Participants were 42 children aged 4-5 years and their biological mothers. Prenatal alcohol consumption was assessed by self-report of maximum drinks per drinking occasion. The Pictorial Depression Scale (PDS) measured child depressive symptoms. Mother-child interactions were assessed using the family interaction puzzle task. RESULTS: Structural equation modeling indicated that prenatal alcohol exposure was associated with more negative child affect. In turn, mothers of more negative children were less emotionally connected to their children, and those children had higher levels of depressive symptomatology. Results could not be explained by current maternal drinking patterns or maternal depression. CONCLUSIONS: Study findings highlight the importance of examining prenatal alcohol exposure as a risk factor in the prediction of childhood-onset depression and the environmental mechanisms that may mediate that relationship.     

Long-term outcome of a school-based, universal approach to prevention of depression in adolescents

In this study, the authors examined the 2-, 3-, and 4-year outcomes of a school-based, universal approach to the prevention of adolescent depression. Despite initial short-term positive effects, these benefits were not maintained over time. Adolescents who completed the teacher-administered cognitive-behavioral intervention did not differ significantly from adolescents in the monitoring-control condition in terms of changes in depressive symptoms, problem solving, attributional style, or other indicators of psychopathology from preintervention to 4-year follow-up. Results were equivalent irrespective of initial level of depressive symptoms.     

Associations between maternal depression and mother and infant oxytocin receptor gene (OXTR_rs53576) polymorphisms

Polymorphisms in the oxytocin receptor gene, OXTR_rs53576, have been linked to differences in maternal sensitivity and depressive symptoms. Although some studies suggest the A allele confers risk for mood disorders, individuals homozygous for the G allele may exhibit greater sensitivity to both positive and negative social experiences, including in the mother–infant dyad. Given the bi-directional nature of mother–infant influences on maternal mood, we tested the association between both mothers’ and infants’ OXTR_rs53576 genotype and maternal depression, as assessed through a self-report inventory. Although Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-II) scores were significantly higher for GG in comparison to AG/AA mothers, and for mothers of GG in comparison to AG/AA infants, an ANCOVA revealed that after sociodemographic risk factors had been controlled, infants’, but not mothers’, OXTR genotype predicted maternal depression scores, with no significant interaction between the two. The effect of infant OXTR on maternal depression was not explained by maternal reports of difficult infant temperament. We propose that GG infants have an enhanced capacity for processing both positive and negative socially meaningful contextual information, first amplifying and then differentially perpetuating negative affectivity in mothers who exhibit depressive characteristics.     

Parenting as a Moderator of the Effects of Maternal Depressive Symptoms on Preadolescent Adjustment

The purpose of this study was to examine whether parenting moderated the association between maternal depressive symptoms and initial levels and growth of preadolescent internalizing and externalizing symptoms. This study used a community sample of preadolescent children (N = 214; 8–12 years old at Time 1), measuring maternal depressive symptoms and parenting at Time 1, and preadolescent internalizing and externalizing symptoms at each year for 3 years. After modeling latent growth curves of internalizing and externalizing symptoms, growth factors were conditioned on maternal depressive symptoms, positive (acceptance and consistent discipline) and negative (rejection and physical punishment) parenting, and the interactions of depression and parenting. Maternal rejection moderated the relation of maternal depression with internalizing symptoms, such that high rejection exacerbated the effects of maternal depressive symptoms on initial levels of preadolescent internalizing problems. There were no significant interactions predicting externalizing problems. The findings highlight how specific parenting behaviors may alter the way in which maternal depressive symptoms confer risk for behavior problems.     

Early adolescents' temperament, emotion regulation during mother-child interactions, and depressive symptomatology

This study examined the relations among temperament, emotion regulation, and depressive symptoms in early adolescents. Early adolescents provided self-reports of temperament on two occasions, as well as reports on emotion regulation and depressive symptomatology. Furthermore, 163 of these adolescents participated in event-planning and problem-solving interactions with their mothers. Adolescents with temperaments that were high in negative emotionality or low in effortful control displayed more emotionally dysregulated behaviors during the interaction tasks, reported having maladaptive responses to negative affect more often and adaptive responses less often, and had more depressive symptoms. In particular, adolescents with the high negative emotionality and low effortful control temperament combination reported the highest levels of depressive symptomatology. Sequential analyses of family interactions indicated that adolescents with more depressive symptoms were more likely to reciprocate their mothers' negative affective behaviors. Adolescents' adaptive and maladaptive responses to negative affect mediated the associations between their temperament and concurrent depressive symptoms.     

Observations of early triadic family interactions: boundary disturbances in the family predict symptoms of depression, anxiety, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in middle childhood

This article argues for the importance of focusing explicitly on the construct of boundary disturbances in families to understand the development of depressive, anxious, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms in middle childhood. Grounded in family systems theory, this study examined traditional parent-child antecedents of childhood depression and anxiety (hostile, controlling, and disengaged interactions) in the context of the entire family as well as enmeshed patterns, whereby one parent drew in the child by turning to the child for caregiving or intimacy and excluded the spouse, and balanced patterns, whereby all family members expressed vulnerabilities and asserted their needs or desires. Mostly White, middle-class mothers, fathers, and children were observed at home interacting on a series of everyday tasks when the children were 24 months old, and mothers and teachers rated children's symptoms of anxiety, depression, somatic problems, and ADHD at age 7. Regression analyses revealed that, after controlling for maternal depression and the effects of other family patterns, enmeshed family patterns forecast children's depressive symptoms; controlling and disengaged interactions predicted anxious and depressive symptoms; and hostility forecast ADHD and somatic complaints. Intriguing gender differences emerged. As predicted, whereas boys who experienced enmeshed family patterns more often developed symptoms of ADHD, girls who experienced enmeshed family interactions later showed symptoms of depression.     

A Longitudinal Study of Fathers’ and Young Children’s Depressive Symptoms

Considerable research has examined the effects of maternal depression on children, but few studies have focused on the relation between paternal and child depressive symptoms, particularly during early childhood. Even fewer studies have been longitudinal, leaving open questions about how paternal and child depression covary over time. The present study sought to address this gap by examining the relation between fathers’ and children’s depressive symptoms over a 3-year period. Participants were 153 preschool children with behavior problems and their parents. Three longitudinal analytic approaches were used to examine how father and child depression change together and predict one another over time. Additional analyses examined whether externalizing problems or maternal depression might account for the associations between fathers’ and children’s depressive symptoms. Changes in paternal depression significantly predicted changes in father-reported and mother-reported child depressive symptoms. These effects were evident both in year-to-year fluctuations and in linear trajectories across the 3-year period. Cross-lagged analyses suggested that these relations may have been driven by father-effects; paternal depression at one time point predicted child depression at the next time point, but child depression did not significantly predict later paternal depression. We found little evidence that externalizing problems or maternal depression accounted for the relations between fathers’ and children’s depressive symptoms. Results provide convergent evidence that fathers’ depression may play an important role in the development of depressive symptoms in young children and underscore the importance of including fathers in studies of depression in families.     

Maternal depression and psychiatric outcomes in adolescent offspring: a 13-year longitudinal study

BACKGROUND: Maternal postnatal depression (PND) has been associated with adverse outcomes in young children, but an association with longer-term psychiatric disorder has not been demonstrated. We present the preliminary findings of a 13-year longitudinal study. METHODS: In the course of a prospective longitudinal study, we examined DSM-IV Axis I disorders in 13-year-old adolescents who had (n=53) or had not (n=41) been exposed to maternal PND. We also detailed the occurrence of depression in mothers throughout the 13-year follow-up period. RESULTS: Maternal PND was associated with higher rates of affective disorders in adolescent offspring. However, mothers who developed PND were also substantially more likely than those who did not to experience depression subsequently, a fact that contributed to the development of depressive disorder in offspring. Maternal PND was associated with increased risk for depression in adolescent offspring only if there had also been later episodes of maternal depression. In contrast, anxiety disorders in offspring were elevated in the maternal PND group regardless of the occurrence of subsequent maternal depression. LIMITATIONS: Due to the modest sample size and consequently limited power, findings must be regarded as preliminary. CONCLUSIONS: The particular association between early maternal depression and anxiety disorders in offspring was consistent with theories that emphasise the primacy of early environmental exposures. This position was not supported with respect to offspring depressive disorder, where overall duration of maternal depression was a significant factor. PND was associated with recurrent episodes of depression in the majority of cases, underlining the need for monitoring of this population beyond the postnatal period.     

Hydrogen peroxide-induced Ca2+ responses in CNS pericytes

A single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene Val66Met has been associated with depression. However, the relationship between this SNP and depression has been mixed, especially when comparing studies of child and adult depression. We examined whether Val66Met would predict depression differentially in mothers versus their daughters. We also examined whether rumination, the tendency to brood and repetitively think about negative information, might serve as a mediator in the path between genotype and depressive symptoms. Participants included 200 individuals (100 mother-daughter pairs) from a high-risk population. The BDNF Val66Met polymorphism was examined in DNA samples from the mothers and daughters, and measures of depressive symptoms and rumination were also obtained. Among the young adolescent girls (ages 10-14), the Val/Val genotype was associated with more depressive symptoms and higher rumination scores compared to the Val/Met genotype. Furthermore, rumination mediated the relationship between genotype and depressive symptoms. However, in the mothers with adult-onset depression the Val/Met genotype was associated with more depressive symptoms, and rumination again mediated the relationship between genotype and depression. Rumination may be an endophenotype in the pathway from the BDNF Val66Met polymorphism to depression. Future work should further explore this mechanism and pursue explanations for its effects at different times in development.