Abstract
This study reports on relationships among gender, maternal depressed mood, and children’s trajectories of depressive phenomena across middle childhood and early adolescence. It tested the hypothesis that, compared to boys, girls become increasingly vulnerable to maternal depression as they enter adolescence. The study sample consisted of 834 families from 10 Pacific Northwest schools that participated in the Raising Healthy Children project. Maternal depressed mood and children’s depressive phenomena were assessed annually during an 8-year period that spanned Grade 3 through Grade 10 for the children. Mean scores for girls’ depressive phenomena increased relative to those for boys as children matured. Maternal depressed mood was significantly and positively associated with children’s level of depressive phenomena. An interaction effect of gender and maternal depressed mood on acceleration in children’s depressive phenomena indicated that girls’ trajectories of depressive phenomena were sustained in the presence of maternal depression while those of boys declined in the presence of maternal depression.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
Depression was not a primary target variable of the intervention, and there were no level differences, by experimental condition, in child depression in 3rd through 10th grades. All models used in the present analyses were run separately by experimental condition. Results were similar in terms of direction and magnitude of associations across conditions and supported pooling participants from both conditions in our analyses.
Due to the structure of our data and the extent of missing data on maternal depression across time points and on child depression at the first and last time points, secondary analyses were run using imputation of 10 complete data sets augmented with random error. The results were averaged and standard errors were estimated that took into account both within- and between-imputation variability. In all cases, nonimputed results were similar to those based on multiple imputation in terms of the direction and significance levels of tested fixed effects. Thus, results presented here are based on nonimputed data.
References
Alpern L, Lyons-Ruth K (1995) Preschool children at social risk: Chronicity and timing of maternal depressive symptoms and child behavior problems at school and at home. Dev Psychopathol 5:371–387
American Psychiatric Association (2000) Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders DSM-IV-TR (4th edn.). American Psychiatric Association, Washington, DC
Angold A, Costello EJ (2001) The epidemiology of depression in children and adolescents. In: Goodyer IM (ed) The depressed child and adolescent (2nd edn.). Cambridge child and adolescent psychiatry (pp 143–178) Cambridge University Press, New York
Beardslee WR, Gladstone TRG (2001) Prevention of childhood depression: Recent findings and future prospects. Biol Psychiatry 49:1101–1110
Beardslee WR, Keller MB, Lavori PW, Staley JE, Sacks N (1993) The impact of parental affective disorder on depression in offspring: A longitudinal follow-up in a nonreferred sample. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 32:723–730
Beardslee WR, Versage EM, Gladstone TRG (1998) Children of affectively ill parents: A review of the past 10 years. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 37:1134–1141
Billings AG, Moos RH (1983) Comparisons of children of depressed and nondepressed parents: A social-environmental perspective. J Abnorm Child Psychol 11:463–485
Brennan PA, Hammen C, Andersen MJ, Bor W, Najman JM, Williams GM (2000) Chronicity, severity, and timing of maternal depressive symptoms: Relationships with child outcomes at age 5. Dev Psychol 36:759–766
Brent DA, Kolko DJ, Birmaher B, Baugher M, Bridge J, Roth C, et al (1998) Predictors of treatment efficacy in a clinical trial of three psychosocial treatments for adolescent depression. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 37:906–914
Catalano RF, Mazza JJ, Harachi TW, Abbott RD, Haggerty KP, Fleming CB (2003) Raising healthy children through enhancing social development in elementary school: Results after 1.5 years. J School Psychol 41:143–164
Cole DA, Tram JM, Martin JM, Hoffman KB, Ruiz MD, Jacquez FM, et al (2002) Individual differences in the emergence of depressive symptoms in children and adolescents: A longitudinal investigation of parent and child reports. J Abnorm Psychol 111:156– 165
Compas BE, Ey S, Grant KE (1993) Taxonomy, assessment, and diagnosis of depression during adolescence. Psychol Bull 114:323–344
Compas BE, Oppedisano G, Connor JK, Gerhardt CA, Hinden BR, Achenbach TM, et al (1997) Gender differences in depressive symptoms in adolescence: Comparison of national samples of clinically referred and nonreferred youths. J Consult Clin Psychol 65:617–626
Compton K, Snyder J, Schrepferman L, Bank L, Shortt JW (2003) The contribution of parents and siblings to antisocial and depressive behavior in adolescents: A double jeopardy coercion model. Dev Psychopathol 15:163–182
Crawford TN, Cohen P, Midlarsky E, Brook JS (2001) Internalizing symptoms in adolescents: Gender differences in vulnerability to parental distress and discord. J Res Adolesc 11:95–118
Cyranowski JM, Frank E, Young E, Shear K (2000) Adolescent onset of the gender difference in lifetime rates of major depression. Arch Gen Psychiatry 57:21–27
Davies PT, Windle M (1997) Gender-specific pathways between maternal depressive symptoms, family discord, and adolescent adjustment. Dev Psychol 33:657–668
Dawson G, Ashman SB, Panagiotides H, Hessl D, Self J, Yamada E, et al (2003) Preschool outcomes of children of depressed mothers: Role of maternal behavior, contextual risk, and children’s brain activity. Child Dev 74:1158–1175
Derogatis LR, Lipman RS, Rickels K, Uhlenhuth EH, Covi L (1974) The Hopkins Symptom Checklist (HSCL): A self-report symptom inventory. Behav Sci 19:1–15
Downey G, Coyne JC (1990) Children of depressed parents: An integrative review. Psychol Bull 108:50–76
Duggal S, Carlson EA, Sroufe LA, Egeland B (2001) Depressive symptomatology in childhood and adolescence. Dev Psychopathol 13:143–164
Ensminger ME, Hanson SG, Riley AW, Juon H-S (2003) Maternal psychological distress: Adult sons’ and daughters’ mental health and educational attainment. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 42:1108–1115
Fergusson DM, Horwood LJ, Lynskey MT (1995) Maternal depressive symptoms and depressive symptoms in adolescents. J Child Psychol Psychiatry 36:1161–1178
Forehand R, McCombs A (1988) Unraveling the antecedent consequence conditions in maternal depression and adolescent functioning. Behav Res Ther 26:399–405
Garber J, Keiley MK, Martin NC (2002) Developmental trajectories of adolescents’ depressive symptoms: Predictors of change. J Consult Clin Psychol 70:79–95
Ge X, Conger RD, Elder GH Jr (2001) The relation between puberty and psychological distress in adolescent boys. J Res Adolesc 11:49– 70
Ge X, Lorenz FO, Conger RD, Elder GH, Simons RL (1994) Trajectories of stressful life events and depressive symptoms during adolescence. Dev Psychol 30:467–483l
Goodman SH, Gotlib IH (eds) (2002) Children of depressed parents: Mechanisms of risk and implications for treatment. American Psychological Association, Washington, DC
Grotevant HD (1998) Adolescent development in family contexts. In: Damon W (ed) Handbook of child psychology: Social, emotional, and personality development (5th edn., Vol. 3, pp 1097–1149) Wiley & Sons, New York
Hammen C, Brennan PA (2003) Severity, chronicity, and timing of maternal depression and risk for adolescent offspring diagnoses in a community sample. Arch Gen Psychiatry 60:253–258
Hammen C, Burge D, Adrian C (1991) Timing of mother and child depression in a longitudinal study of children at risk. J Consult Clin Psychol 59:341–345
Hammen C, Burge D, Stansbury K (1990) Relationship of mother and child variables to child outcomes in a high-risk sample: A causal modeling analysis. Dev Psychol 26:24–30
Hankin BL, Abramson LY (1999) Development of gender differences in depression: Description and possible explanations. Ann Med 31:372–379
Hankin BL, Abramson LY, Moffitt TE, Silva PA, McGee R, Angell KE (1998) Development of depression from preadolescence to young adulthood: Emerging gender differences in a 10-year longitudinal study. J Abnorm Psychol 107:128–140
Hill JP, Lynch ME (1983) The intensification of gender-related role expectations during early adolescence. In: Brookes-Gunn J, Petersen AC (eds) Girls at puberty: Biological and psychological perspectives (pp 201–228) Plenum, New York
Holsen I, Kraft P, Vitterso J (2000) Stability in depressed mood in adolescence: Results from a 6-year longitudinal panel study. J Youth Adolesc 29:61–78
Hops H (1992) Parental depression and child behavior problems: Implications for behavioural family intervention. Behav Change 9:126–138
Hops H (1996) Intergenerational transmission of depressive symptoms: Gender and developmental considerations. In: Mundt C, Goldstein MJ (eds) Interpersonal factors in the origin and course of affective disorders (pp 113–129) Gaskell/Royal College of Psychiatrists, London
Kovacs M (1981) Rating scales to assess depression in school-aged children. Acta Paedopsychiatr: Int J Child Adolesc Psychiatry 46:305–315
Kovacs M (1992) Children’s Depression Inventory. Mental Health Systems, Inc, North Tonawanda, NY
Kusche CA, Greenberg MT (1988) Seattle Personality Questionnaire for Young School Aged Children (Unpublished personality questionnaire). University of Washington, Seattle
Lewinsohn PM, Solomon A, Seeley JR, Zeiss A (2000) Clinical implications of “subthreshold” depressive symptoms. J Abnorm Psychol 109:345–351
Montemayor R, Van Komen R (1985) The development of sex differences in friendship patterns and peer group structure during adolescence. J Early Adolesc 5:285–294
Nolen-Hoeksema S, Girgus JS (1994) The emergence of gender differences in depression during adolescence. Psychol Bull 115:424–443
Petterson SM, Albers AB (2001) Effects of poverty and maternal depression on early child development. Child Dev 72:1794–1813
Pine DS, Cohen E, Cohen P, Brook J (1999) Adolescent depressive symptoms as predictors of adult depression: Moodiness or mood disorder? Am J Psychiatry 156:133–135
Radloff LS (1977) The CES-D Scale: A self-report depression scale for research in the general population. Appl Psychol Meas 1:385–401
Raudenbush SW, Bryk AS (2002) Hierarchical Linear Models: Applications and data analysis methods (2nd ed.). Sage, Thousand Oaks, CA
Rey JM, Grayson D, Mojarrad T, Walter G (2002) Changes in the rate of diagnosis of major depression in adolescents following routine use of a depression rating scale. Aust N Z J Psychiatry 36:229– 233
Reynolds WM, Graves A (1989) Reliability of children’s reports of depressive symptomatology. J Abnorm Child Psychol 17:647– 655
Sheeber L, Davis B, Hops H (2002) Gender-specific vulnerability to depression in children of depressed mothers. In Goodman SH, Gotlib IH (eds) Children of depressed parents: Mechanisms of risk and implications for treatment (pp 253–274) American Psychological Association, Washington, DC
Silberg J, Rutter M (2002) Nature-nurture interplay in the risks associated with parental depression. In Goodman SH, Gotlib IH (eds) Children of depressed parents: Mechanisms of risk and implications for treatment (pp 13–36) American Psychological Association, Washington, DC
Steinberg L, Morris AS (2000) Adolescent development. Annu Rev Psychol 52:83–110
Twenge JM, Nolen-Hoeksema S (2002) Age, gender, race, socioeconomic status, and birth cohort difference on the children’s depression inventory: A meta-analysis. J Abnorm Psychol 111:578–588
U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (2002) Screening for depression. Retrieved March 25, 2005, from the World Wide Web: http://www.ahcpr.gov/clinic/3rduspstf/depression/depresswh.htm
Wade TJ, Cairney J, Pevalin DJ (2002) Emergence of gender differences in depression during adolescence: National panel results from three countries. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry 41:190–198
Weissman MM, Gammon GD, John K, Merikangas KR, Warner V, Prusoff BA, et al (1987) Children of depressed parents: Increased psychopathology and early onset of major depression. Arch Gen Psychiatry 44:847–853
Weissman MM, Warner V, Wickramaratne P, Moreau D, Olfson M (1997) Offspring of depressed parents: 10 years later. Arch Gen Psychiatry 54:932–940
Wichstrom L (1999) The emergence of gender difference in depressed mood during adolescence: The role of intensified gender socialization. Dev Psychol 35:232–245
Windle M, Dumenci L (1998) An investigation of maternal and adolescent depressed mood using a latent trait-state model. J Res Adolesc 8:461–484
Acknowledgments
This research was supported by research grant # RO1 DA08093 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The authors gratefully acknowledge Edmonds School District #15 for their support and cooperation in the Raising Healthy Children Program. We are grateful to W. Alex Mason for his comments on an earlier draft of this manuscript and to Aline Sayers for her statistical guidance.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
An earlier version of this paper was presented at the Society for Research on Adolescence annual meeting, March 11–14, 2004 in Baltimore, MD.
investigator with the Raising Healthy Children project, Social Development Research Group, School of Social Work, University of Washington, on a minority supplement awarded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse. Her research interests include the social-emotional development of young children and mental health outcomes in children and adolescents.
research analyst for the Raising Healthy Children project, Social Development Research Group, School of Social Work, University of Washington. Mr. Fleming’s interests include prevention science and the etiology of adolescent problem behavior.
Professor and the Director of the Social Development Research Group, School of Social Work, University of Washington. Dr. Catalano is the principal investigator on a number of federal grants, which include family, school, and community-based prevention approaches to reduce risk while enhancing the protective factors of bonding and promotion of healthy beliefs and clear standards.
research analyst with the Social Development Research Group, School of Social Work, University of Washington. Dr. Brown is currently investigating the efficacy of the Raising Healthy Children intervention. His research interest is in the development of longitudinal methods as they apply to adolescent substance use, mental health, and well-being.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Cortes, R.C., Fleming, C.B., Catalano, R.F. et al. Gender Differences in the Association between Maternal Depressed Mood and Child Depressive Phenomena from Grade 3 through Grade 10. J Youth Adolescence 35, 810–821 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-006-9083-0
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-006-9083-0