Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2011 Feb;39(2):159-71.
doi: 10.1007/s10802-010-9458-2.

Transactional associations between youths' responses to peer stress and depression: the moderating roles of sex and stress exposure

Anna M Agoston  1 , Karen D Rudolph
Affiliations

Transactional associations between youths' responses to peer stress and depression: the moderating roles of sex and stress exposure

Anna M Agoston et al. J Abnorm Child Psychol. 2011 Feb.

Abstract

This study examined transactional associations between responses to peer stress and depression in youth. Specifically, it tested the hypotheses that (a) depression would predict fewer effortful responses and more involuntary, dysregulated responses to peer stress over time; and (b) fewer adaptive and more maladaptive responses would predict subsequent depression. Youth (M age = 12.41; SD = 1.19; 86 girls, 81 boys) and their maternal caregivers completed semi-structured interviews and questionnaires at three annual waves. Multi-group comparison path analyses were conducted to examine sex and stress-level differences in the proposed reciprocal-influence model. In girls and in youth exposed to high levels of peer stress, maladaptive stress responses predicted more depressive symptoms and adaptive stress responses predicted fewer depressive symptoms at each wave. These findings suggest the utility of preventive interventions for depression designed to enhance the quality of girls' stress responses. In boys, depression predicted less adaptive and more maladaptive stress responses, but only at the second wave. These findings suggest that interventions designed to reduce boys' depressive symptoms may help them develop more adaptive stress responses.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Path models examining sex differences in reciprocal associations between responses to stress and depression for (a) effortful engagement, (b) effortful disengagement, (c) involuntary engagement, and (d) involuntary disengagement. Path coefficients without parentheses are for girls; path coefficients in parentheses are for boys. *p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.
Figure 1
Figure 1
Path models examining sex differences in reciprocal associations between responses to stress and depression for (a) effortful engagement, (b) effortful disengagement, (c) involuntary engagement, and (d) involuntary disengagement. Path coefficients without parentheses are for girls; path coefficients in parentheses are for boys. *p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Path models examining stress level differences in reciprocal associations between responses to stress and depression for (a) effortful engagement, (b) effortful disengagement, (c) involuntary engagement, and (d) involuntary disengagement. Path coefficients without parentheses are for high peer stress; path coefficients in parentheses are for low peer stress. *p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Path models examining stress level differences in reciprocal associations between responses to stress and depression for (a) effortful engagement, (b) effortful disengagement, (c) involuntary engagement, and (d) involuntary disengagement. Path coefficients without parentheses are for high peer stress; path coefficients in parentheses are for low peer stress. *p < .05. **p < .01. ***p < .001.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Abramson LY, Seligman ME, Teasdale JD. Learned helplessness in humans: Critique and reformulation. Journal of Abnormal Psychology. 1978;87:49–74. - PubMed
    1. American Psychiatric Association . Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders. 4th ed. Author; Washington, DC: 2000. Text Revision.
    1. Amirkhan JH. Attributions as predictors of coping and distress. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. 1998;24:1006–1018.
    1. Arbuckle JL. AMOS 7.0 [Computer Software] Small Waters Corp.; Chicago: 2006.
    1. Bell-Dolan DJ, Reaven NM, Petersen L. Depression and social functioning: A multidimensional study of the linkages. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology. 1993;22:306–315.