Risk for Adolescent Depression: Gender Differences and Contagion in Peer Networks

描述（由申请人提供）：虽然同伴友谊为大多数青少年提供了支持的基础，但这些友谊的特征也可能赋予抑郁的风险，并可能有助于解释青春期抑郁的性别差异的出现。理论家们假设，与朋友共同思考的倾向可能反映了一种机制，通过这种机制，同伴们在无意中培养了他们之间对抑郁症的认知脆弱性，同时加强了友谊。因此，这可能是一种社会强化倾向，增加了青少年患抑郁症的风险。之前的研究支持了共同沉思会增加抑郁风险的假设；然而，传递这种风险的机制仍不清楚。本研究旨在整合风险的认知和人际模型，在一项前瞻性研究青少年新生在他们的第一学期过渡到高中。主要目的1是通过检查青少年的适应和不适应结果来扩展先前的共同反思工作。我们假设，随着时间的推移，共同反思的朋友会报告更高质量的友谊，同时也会报告更多的抑郁症状。此外，我们预测与朋友共同反刍对抑郁风险的影响是通过青少年反刍水平的增加来调节的。此外，我们预测，这个整合了人际关系和认知成分的综合模型，将有助于解释女孩在青春期开始患抑郁症的风险增加。主要目的2是在青少年社会网络的背景下评估这些影响。理论家们假设，观察到的同伴之间行为的相似性（包括抑郁症状）可能归因于选择与自己相似的同伴（选择效应）和采用或发展同伴的行为（传染效应）。迄今为止，同伴传染对抑郁症的研究主要局限于二元同伴环境。本研究将运用社会网络模型在青少年同伴网络的大背景下绘制抑郁传染效应。社会网络分析的一个关键创新是能够定位焦虑的青少年在他们的同伴网络中的位置，并确定个体的特征，这些个体更容易受到来自焦虑同伴的同伴传染效应的影响。在本研究中，我们将评估共同反刍在青少年社交网络中作为抑郁症同伴传染机制的作用。此外，我们将确定共同反刍对同伴传染效应的影响是否特定于抑郁和外化行为。拟议的研究结果将有助于确定高危青少年的具体风险机制，这是为那些最容易患抑郁症的人设计更有针对性的干预措施的必要步骤。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Although peer friendships provide the basis of support for most adolescents, characteristics of these friendships may also confer risk to depression, and may help to explain the emergence of gender differences in depression during adolescence. Theorists have hypothesized that the tendency to co-ruminate with one's friends may reflect a mechanism by which peers inadvertently foster cognitive vulnerability for depression amongst themselves, while simultaneously bolstering the friendship. Therefore, it may be a socially reinforcing tendency that increases risk for depression in adolescents. Previous research has supported the hypothesis that co-rumination increases risk for depression; however, the mechanisms by which this risk is conveyed remain unclear. The proposed study seeks to integrate cognitive and interpersonal models of risk in a prospective study of adolescent freshmen during their first semester transition into high school. Primary Aim 1 is to extend prior work on co- rumination by examining both adaptive and maladaptive outcomes in adolescents. We hypothesize that friends who co-ruminate will report higher-quality friendships while also reporting more depressive symptoms over time. In addition, we predict that the impact of co-ruminating with one's friends for depression risk is mediated by increased levels of rumination in adolescents. Further, we predict that this integrated model, which incorporates both interpersonal and cognitive components, will help to account for girls' heightened risk for depression beginning in adolescence. Primary Aim 2 is to evaluate these effects within the context of adolescents' social networks. Theorists have hypothesized that the similarity of behaviors observed between peers (including depressive symptoms) may be attributed to both selecting peers similar to oneself (selection effects) and adopting or developing peers' behaviors (contagion effects). To date, research on peer contagion for depression has been largely limited to the dyadic peer context. The proposed study will apply social network modeling to map depression contagion effects in the larger context of adolescents' peer networks. A key innovation of social network analyses is the ability to locate where dysphoric adolescents lie within their peer networks and to identify characteristics of individuals who are more versus less vulnerable to peer contagion effects from dysphoric peers. In the proposed study, we will evaluate the role of co-rumination as a mechanism for peer contagion of depression within adolescents' social networks. Further, we will determine whether the impact of co-rumination on peer contagion effects is specific to depression versus externalizing behaviors. The results of the proposed study will help to determine specific mechanisms of risk in at-risk adolescents, which is a necessary step in designing more focused interventions for those at greatest risk for depression. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Characteristics of adolescents' friendships may increase their risk for depression, particularly among adolescent girls. The proposed study represents an important step in understanding the peer context of depression risk, and will provide information on a specific mechanism that may help to explain the emergence of gender difference in depression during adolescence. Results from this study, therefore, may inform the development of more targeted prevention/ early intervention programs for those at greatest risk with the goal of both preventing depression onset and fostering healthier friendships.