Father–Daughter Attachment and Communication in Depressed and Nondepressed Adolescent Girls

Abstract

This study was designed to examine the nature of attachment and communication patterns in adolescent girls and their fathers, comparing girls with and without depression. Paternal and maternal psychopathology was also examined. Adolescent girls diagnosed with a depressive disorder (n = 51) and never-depressed adolescent girls (n = 65) and their fathers, completed semi-structured diagnostic interviews and measures of parent–adolescent attachment and communication. Mothers of all participating girls completed a diagnostic interview for mood disorders. Girls diagnosed with depression were more likely than their nondepressed counterparts to have fathers with diagnosable psychopathology or mothers with mood disorders. In addition, girls diagnosed with depression reported less perceived paternal warmth and more perceived overall rejection, less perceived paternal emotional availability, more negative affect about their fathers, lower attachment, and more problematic communication. Fathers of girls diagnosed with depression reported worse communication with their daughters than did fathers of nondepressed girls. Future research should explore the interplay of family psychopathology and relationship variables in the selection and implementation of individual and family interventions for depression.