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Depressive styles in adolescence: Assessment, relation to social functioning, and developmental trends

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Abstract

Examined the relation of dependency and self-criticism to social functioning among adolescents. Subjects were 7th–11th graders from a suburban high school who completed the Depressive Experiences Questionnaire for Adolescents (DEQ-A) and the Inventory of Interpersonal Problems (IIP). The results showed that self-criticism was strongly associated with reporting a greater number of interpersonal problems, particularly in the areas of sociability and control. Dependency was only marginally related to interpersonal difficulties. The results also showed that levels of self-criticism tended to decline steadily across the high-school years, whereas levels of dependency followed a U-shaped curvilinear pattern in which it was higher in the early and late high school years relative to the middle years. Finally, the present study provides initial evidence of a reliable, shortened 20-item version of the DEQ-A.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Psychology Department, McGill University, 1205 Dr. Penfield Avenue, H3A 1B1, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

    Laura Fichman (Doctoral Candidate), Richard Koestner (Assistant Professor) & David C. Zuroff (Associate Professor)

Authors
  1. Laura Fichman
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  2. Richard Koestner
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  3. David C. Zuroff
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Additional information

This research was funded by a team grant to David Zuroff, Richard Koestner, and Debbie Moskowitz from the Fonds Pour La Formation De Chercheurs Et L'Aide A La Recherche (FCAR-Quebec). Richard Koestner was also funded by a McGill Faculty grant.

Received B.A. from McGrill University. Research interests include personality development and psychosocial adjustment.

Received Ph.D. from University of Rochester. Research interests include motivation, personality, and life-span development.

Received Ph.D. degree from University of Connecticut. Research interests include dependency, self-criticism, and vulnerability to depression.

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Fichman, L., Koestner, R. & Zuroff, D.C. Depressive styles in adolescence: Assessment, relation to social functioning, and developmental trends. J Youth Adolescence 23, 315–330 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01536722

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01536722

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