FAMILY ENVIRONMENT AND DEPRESSION IN ADOLESCENTS

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This is the first revision of an individual research fellowship application. The principal objectives of the proposed research are to evaluate the relationship among family functioning, parental depression, parental marital conflicts with depression, and to evaluate the relationship between marital conflicts and behavior problems in Puerto Rican adolescents. Adolescent depression is one of the most common psychological disorders manifested in this population. Although the number of investigations in depression have increased in the last decades, the need to carry out studies in this area is essential, specifically in Hispanic populations. It is important to identify the particular characteristics associated to depressive symptomatology in Hispanics in order to develop effective preventive interventions and treatment for this population. Taking into consideration that family environment is very important to Hispanics, the specific aims of the research proposal are to evaluate: 1) the relationship between family functioning and depressive symptomatology in adolescents; 2) the relationship between perceived marital conflicts and depressive symptomatology; 3) the relationship between perceived marital conflicts and behavioral problems; 4) the relationship between marital satisfaction and depressive symptomatology in parents; 5) the relationship between parental depressive symptomatology and depressive symptomatology in adolescents. In addition, in this study gender, age, residential zone differences will be evaluated. The predictive values of these variables on depression will be explored. All of these relationships will be evaluated in a community and in a clinical sample, and also a comparison between the two samples will be carry out. The sample of this research will consist of two community and clinical sub-samples. The community sample will be selected from students (and their parents) of a public intermediate school and a public high school of a city in the center area of Puerto Rico. Participants of the Adolescents Depression Project, directed by Dr. Rossello will constitute the clinical sample of this investigation. These participants are adolescents who present depressive symptomatology and are going to take individual or group psychotherapy as treatment for depression. After the sample is selected, several instruments will be administered to the adolescents and their parents. The instruments that will be administered to adolescents are: 1) Children's Depression Inventory, 2) Child Behavior Checklist, 3) Family Assessment Measure, 4) Family Emotional Involvement and Criticism Scale, and 5) Children's Perception Questionnaire. The following instruments will be administered to the parents: 1) Beck Depression Inventory and 2) Dyadic Adjustment Scale. To analyze the information obtained from the self-report instruments administered to adolescents and their parents, differents statistical analyses will be carry out (correlational analysis, multiple regression analysis, analysis of T-test to evaluate differences between variables and between correlations).