Abstract
Research on adolescent depression has overwhelmingly focused on risk factors, such as stressful negative events and cognitive vulnerabilities, but much important information can be gained by focusing on protective factors. Thus, the current study aimed to broaden understanding on adolescent depression by considering the role of two positive elements as protective factors, attributional style for positive events and self-esteem, in a model of depression. The sample included 491 middle school students (52 % female; n = 249) with an age range from 12 to 15 years (M = 13.2, SD = .70). The sample was ethnically/racially diverse, with 55 % White, 22 % Hispanic, 10 % Asian American, 3 % African American, and 10 % Biracial/Other. Correlational analyses indicated significant cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between an enhancing attributional style (internal, stable, global attributions for positive events), self-esteem and depressive symptoms. Further, prospective analyses using bootstrapping methodology demonstrated significant indirect effects of an enhancing attributional style on decreases in depressive symptoms through its effects on self-esteem. These findings highlight the importance of considering attributional style for positive events as a protective factor in the developmental course of depressive symptoms during early adolescence.
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Acknowledgments
This manuscript is based on the dissertation of the second author under the mentorship of the first author. We would like to thank and acknowledge the contributions and thoughtful feedback of Kelly S. Flanagan, Ph.D., and Cynthia Neal Kimball, Ph.D., as readers on Dr. George’s dissertation projects. We would also like to thank the students and staff at this middle school for their participation.
Author Contributions
S.R. conceived of the study, collected the data, participated in its design and coordination, assisted with the statistical analysis, and revised the original dissertation into a manuscript. R.G. conducted the literature review, participated in the design, analysis and interpretation of the data, and drafted portions of the manuscript. Both authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Conflict of interest
The authors report no conflict of interests.
Ethical Approval
This original data collection was approved by the Institutional Review Board at Northern Illinois University (NIU), and the current study was performed in accordance with the ethical standards of NIU and Wheaton College.
Informed Consent
The current study utilized extant data that were originally collected using active informed consent procedures (parental permission and student assent).
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Rueger, S.Y., George, R. Indirect Effects of Attributional Style for Positive Events on Depressive Symptoms Through Self-Esteem During Early Adolescence. J Youth Adolescence 46, 701–708 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-016-0530-2
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-016-0530-2