Transmission Of Depressive Symptoms Research Articles

Transmission of depressive symptoms in the nuclear family: a cross-sectional and cross-lagged network perspective.

Children are more likely to develop depressive symptoms in families where parents have depressive symptoms. By conceptualizing the individual depressive symptom network of each family member as a whole, this study proposes a family symptom network model, and explored the mechanisms of transmission of depression within nuclear families at the symptom level. This study used four waves (2012, 2016, 2018, 2020) of data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS), which in wave one contained a representative sample of 1963 children (1038 boys; age = 12.60), 4763 mothers and 4614 fathers from China. Children with their parents completed the Center for Epidemiology Studies Depression Scale at each wave. Individual depressive symptom networks among children, fathers, and mothers were highly similar and stable across time. When considering depressive symptoms of all family members as a whole, there was a wide range of associations between child, father, and mother depressive symptom networks. The results of the cross-lagged network model suggest the bidirectional relationships between couples and parent-child depression. The current study provides preliminary validation of the family symptom network model. The model represents a further integration and extension of network theory of mental disorders and family systems theory, and points out the limitations of studying the intergenerational transmission of depression from a latent variable perspective. Thus, the family symptom network model proposed in this study could provide valuable new insights into understanding the intergenerational transmission of depression.

Learning helplessness in the family: Maternal agency and the intergenerational transmission of depressive symptoms.

Children of mothers with elevated depressive symptoms may observe and learn a maladaptive cognitive style, including low perceptions of agency, that is, low perceived control over their emotions and circumstances. In turn, children may face increased cognitive vulnerability to depressive symptoms; however, this mediational model has yet to be tested. Using a longitudinal design and testing our hypotheses within a community sample, we investigated the mediating role of maternal agency in the associations between maternal depressive symptoms and child behavioral helplessness and depressive symptoms one and a half years later (M = 18.58 months, SD = 6.91 months). A diverse sample of school-age children (N = 137, 57.4% female, Mage = 9.74 years, SDage = 1.51 years) and their mothers (N = 122) reported on their depressive symptoms at Time 1. A subsample of children and mothers returned to report on depressive symptoms at Time 2 (N = 68 dyads; 49 with complete data prior to multiple imputation). Maternal agency was coded from narrative responses to the Parent Development Interview-Revised for Parents of School-aged Children (Slade et al., 2009), completed at Time 1. Child behavioral helplessness was indicated by low strategy use at the end of a challenging puzzle task at Time 2. Results revealed that lower maternal agency predicted higher child depressive symptoms at Time 2 and mediated the associations between higher maternal depressive symptoms at Time 1 and higher child behavioral helplessness and depressive symptoms at Time 2. Implications for clinical intervention and future investigations are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).

Sleep Quality Predicts Persistence of Parental Postpartum Depressive Symptoms and Transmission of Depressive Symptoms from Mothers to Fathers.

Early parenthood is a time of chronic sleep disturbance and also of heightened depression risk. Poor sleep quality has been identified both as a predictor of postpartum depressive symptoms and as a consequence. This study sought to clarify causal pathways linking sleep and postpartum depression via longitudinal path modeling. Sleep quality at 6months postpartum was hypothesized to exacerbate depressive symptoms from 1month through 1year postpartum in both mothers and fathers. Within-couple associations between sleep and depression were also tested. Data were drawn from a low-income, racially and ethnically diverse sample of 711 couples recruited after the birth of a child. Depressive symptoms were assessed at 1, 6, and 12months postpartum, and sleep was assessed at 6months postpartum. For both partnered mothers and fathers and for single mothers, depressive symptoms at 1month postpartum predicted sleep quality at 6months, which in turn predicted depressive symptoms at both 6 and 12months. Results held when infant birth weight, breastfeeding status, and parents' race/ethnicity, poverty, education, and immigration status were controlled. Mothers' and fathers' sleep quality and depressive symptoms were correlated, and maternal sleep quality predicted paternal depressive symptoms both at 6 and at 12months. Postpartum sleep difficulties may contribute to a vicious cycle between sleep and the persistence of depression after the birth of a child. Sleep problems may also contribute to the transmission of depression within a couple. Psychoeducation and behavioral treatments to improve sleep may benefit new parents.

Emotional Resilience in Young Adults Who Were Reared by Depressed Parents: The Moderating Effects of Offspring Religiosity/Spirituality

Extending previous research, the present study assessed a broad array of religiousity/spirituality (R/S) factors in order to identify specific facets that might be especially protective against intergenerational transmission of depressive symptoms. Results from 273 young adults who were reared in families characterized by high levels of parental depressive affect found that depressive symptoms in offspring were only related to one of the five dimensions of R/S examined: the frequency of daily spiritual experiences (DSE). Two facets of DSE were identified as being especially potent predictors of lesser depressive symptomology: (a) feelings of deep peace or harmony, and (b) the experience of gratitude.

Transmission of Depressive Symptoms

Transmission of depressive symptoms among spouses is well documented. In accordance with the transactional stress model, cognitive appraisals were tested as indirect effects in transmission. In 82 couples (age range women: 23–44, men: 26–55), both partners’ stress appraisals and depressive symptoms were assessed at three measurement points throughout assisted-reproduction treatment. Relations among partners’ variables were tested using the actor-partner interdependence model. Findings indicated positive transmission effects of depressive symptoms from men to women across both measurement intervals. A positive transmission effect of stress appraisals from men to women was observed from before until after the pregnancy test. Women’s stress appraisals mediated part of the transmission of depressive symptoms from men to women. Men’s stress appraisals, however, were unrelated to women’s earlier depressive symptoms. Men’s earlier depressive symptoms might have operated as cues for women’s adjustment of their own stress appraisals, which then predicted women’s increased depressive symptoms. Using the transactional model as a framework for the study of emotional transmission may help to gain a better understanding of its underlying mechanisms and possible gender or role effects involved.