Negative inferential style, emotional clarity, and life stress: integrating vulnerabilities to depression in adolescence

Higher inflammatory proteins predict future depressive symptom severity among adolescents with lower emotional clarity

BACKGROUND

A growing body of work has implicated inflammation in the pathogenesis of depression. As not all individuals with heightened levels of peripheral inflammation develop symptoms of depression, additional work is needed to identify other factors that catalyze the relationship between inflammation and depressive symptoms. Given that elevated levels of inflammatory activity can induce a variety of emotional changes, the present study examined whether emotional clarity, the trait-like ability to identify, discern, and express one's emotions, influences the strength of the association between inflammatory signaling and concurrent and prospective symptoms of depression.

METHODS

Community adolescents (N = 225, Mage = 16.63 years), drawn from a larger longitudinal project investigating sex and racial differences in depression onset, provided blood samples to determine peripheral levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and C-reactive protein (CRP) at a baseline visit, along with self-report measures of emotional clarity and depressive symptom severity. Depressive symptom severity was assessed again at a follow-up visit approximately 5-months after baseline.

RESULTS

Hierarchical multiple regressions detected a significant interaction between inflammatory markers and emotional clarity on future depression severity, controlling for baseline depressive symptoms. Specifically, among adolescents with low levels of emotional clarity, higher levels of IL-6, CRP, and inflammatory composite scores were significantly associated with greater future depression severity.

CONCLUSIONS

These results indicate that low emotional clarity and high inflammatory signaling may jointly confer risk for prospective depressive symptom severity among adolescents. Therapeutic interventions that improve emotional clarity may reduce risk of depressive symptoms among adolescents with low-grade peripheral inflammation.

Bidirectionality of smoking and depression in adolescents: a systematic review

INTRODUCTION

Recently, evidence has been accumulating that both smoking and mental health disorders are continuously increasing among adolescents. This systematic review elucidates the research into evidence of the direction of the association and risk factors influencing the relationship between smoking and depression. We also highlight recent studies on the effects of electronic cigarettes and developments on the association between depression and smoking.

METHODS

A literature search was conducted on databases including PubMed, Ovid Medline, EMBASE, and PsycINFO and in relevant neurology and psychiatry journals. Terms used for electronic searches included smoking, tobacco, cigarettes; depression; adolescent, youth; direction. Relevant information was then utilized to synthesize findings on the association between smoking and depression among adolescent population.

RESULTS

The initial database searches yielded 2,738 related articles. After screening and cross-referencing, duplicate articles, articles published in languages other than English, and studies on animals, social and lifestyle factors, mood disorders, and substance use were excluded. Of these, a total of 122 publications only focusing on smoking and depression in the adolescent population were selected for synthesis in this qualitative systemic review. These include 110 original research articles, eight meta-analyses and reviews, and four reports and websites.

CONCLUSION

The relationship between smoking and depression in the literature does not reflect the cause-effect relationship. The lack of evidence on the direction of the association may reflect futile study designs, confounding factors and/or use of indirect measures of depression and quantification of smoking. Future prospective randomized studies should target elucidation of the causal association.

Decentering predicts attenuated perseverative thought and internalizing symptoms following stress exposure: A multi-level, multi-wave study

While research identifies a growing list of risk factors for anxiety and depression, it is equally important to identify potential protective factors that may prevent or reduce vulnerability to developing internalizing psychopathology. We hypothesized that forms of perseverative thinking, such as rumination and worry, act as mechanisms linking negative life experiences and prospective symptoms of anxiety and depression. More specifically, we investigated whether decentering, the meta-cognitive capacity to adopt a distanced perspective toward one's thoughts and feelings, serves as a protective factor at various points along this mediational pathway. A sample of 181 undergraduate students were recruited and assessed at five time points over a 12-week period. Multilevel modeling indicated that decentering was associated with an attenuated impact of (1) negative events on prospective depressive symptoms; (2) negative events on prospective brooding, and (3) brooding, pondering and worry on prospective internalizing symptoms. Multilevel moderated mediation analyses provided partial support for the hypothesis that perseverative thinking would mediate the longitudinal associations between negative life events and internalizing symptoms, with decentering attenuating risk at several connections of the indirect pathways. The strongest support was provided for moderated mediation models in which decentering was associated with attenuated relationships between negative events, brooding, and symptoms of depression. This study is the first to elucidate the role of decentering as a protective factor against anxiety and depressive symptoms at different points in the path from stress to perseverative thought to internalizing symptoms. Decentering therefore may be a critical target for clinical intervention to promote resilience against anxiety and depression.

Irritability and mood symptoms in adolescent girls: Trait anxiety and emotion dysregulation as mediators

BACKGROUND

Irritability is a common symptom in youth that is thought to be predictive of mood disorders. Its effects on mood are likely to be age-dependent, with direct and indirect mediators. We assessed age-related effects and mediators of irritability in adolescent girls with subthreshold depressive and manic symptoms.

METHODS

We analysed the irritability item from the Mood Disorder Questionnaire in 3 cohorts of girls aged 12-18years (N=229); 12-13years (N=82); 14-15years (N=68); and 16-18years (N=79). They also completed mood, anxiety and emotion regulation questionnaires. MANOVA, correlations and bootstrapped mediation analyses were performed with SPSS®v25 and Hayes Processv3.5®.

RESULTS

Overall, irritable girls had higher depressive and manic symptoms, trait anxiety and emotion dysregulation than those who were not irritable. Significantly higher rates of irritability were observed in mid-adolescents (aged 14-15years; p = 0.001). Notably, irritability exerted effects on depressive symptoms via trait anxiety, non-acceptance of emotions and dysregulation in emotion clarity throughout adolescence. However, irritability directly exerted effects on manic symptoms in mid-adolescence but in older adolescents, their relationship was indirect via impulse control dysregulation.

LIMITATIONS

The cross-sectional design and non-clinical sample limit generalisability of our findings.

CONCLUSIONS

Irritability is involved in subthreshold depressive symptoms, via trait anxiety and perceptual emotion dysregulation. On the other hand, irritability is directly and indirectly associated with subthreshold manic symptoms via dysregulated impulse control depending on age. Therefore, screening for irritability, trait anxiety and emotion dysregulation throughout adolescence may facilitate the early detection of subthreshold depressive and manic symptoms, and the implementation of preventive strategies.

The perils of murky emotions: Emotion differentiation moderates the prospective relationship between naturalistic stress exposure and adolescent depression

Negative emotion differentiation (NED) refers to the ability to identify and label discrete negative emotions. Low NED has been previously linked to depression and other indices of low psychological well-being. However, this construct has rarely been explored during adolescence, a time of escalating depression risk, or examined in the context of naturalistic stressors. Further, the association between NED and depression has never been tested longitudinally. We propose a diathesis-stress model wherein low NED amplifies the association between stressful life events (SLEs) and depression. A sample of 233 community-recruited midadolescents (Mage 15.90 years, 54% female) completed diagnostic interviews and reported on mood and daily stressors 4 times per day for 7 days. SLEs were assessed using a semistructured interview with diagnosis-blind team coding based on the contextual threat method. Follow-up interviews were conducted 1.5 years after baseline. Low NED was correlated with depression but did not predict prospective changes in depression as a main effect. Confirming predictions and supporting a diathesis-stress model, low NED predicted (a) within-subjects associations between daily hassles and momentary depressed mood, (b) between-subjects associations between SLE severity and depression, and (c) prospective associations between SLE severity and increases in depression at follow-up. Results were specific to negative (vs. positive) emotion differentiation. Results suggest that low NED is primarily depressogenic in the context of high stress exposure. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

The Mediating Role of Catastrophizing in the Relationship Between Emotional Clarity and Posttraumatic Stress Symptoms Among Earthquake Survivors in Korea: A Cross-Sectional Study

Difficulties in emotion regulation reportedly contribute to the development and maintenance of PTSD following exposure to natural disasters. Based on the extended process model of emotion regulation, the present study hypothesized that maladaptive emotion regulation strategies will mediate the relationship between emotional clarity and posttraumatic stress symptoms in a sample of earthquake survivors. A total of 195 adult residents of Gyeongju and Pohang, southeastern coastal cities in Korea, who had experienced recent earthquakes participated in an online survey study. They completed questionnaires assessing emotional clarity, emotion regulation, and posttraumatic stress symptoms a year and 10 months after the Gyeongju earthquake and 7 months after the Pohang earthquake. Bootstrapping procedures were used to test for a mediation effect. The results suggest that emotional clarity was indirectly associated with posttraumatic stress symptoms through maladaptive emotion regulation strategies, especially catastrophizing. The findings suggest that individuals with low emotional clarity tend to use maladaptive strategies, catastrophizing in particular, which may contribute to posttraumatic stress symptoms. This may reflect the mechanism underlying emotional clarity and offer suggestions for target of treatment in the management of long-term psychological difficulties in earthquake survivors. Replication of the current results in a sample of patients diagnosed with PTSD is necessary to better understand the development and progression of the disorder, as well as effective interventions for PTSD.

From Emotional Intelligence to Self-Injuries: A Path Analysis in Adolescents With Conduct Disorder

Objective: Self-harm acts are highly prevalent among adolescents with conduct disorder. It has been shown that low level of emotional intelligence (EI) might be related to a higher risk of self-injuries. However, the exact mechanisms underlying this association are still unclear. The purpose of this study was to explore whether psychopathological symptoms and selected psychological processes mediate the association between EI and self-harm risk in adolescents with conduct disorders. Method: Out of 162 adolescents with conduct disorder approached for participation, 136 individuals (aged 14.8 ± 1.2 years, 56.6% females) were enrolled and completed the questionnaires evaluating the level of EI, depression, anxiety, impulsiveness, empathy, venturesomeness, self-esteem, and disgust. Results: Individuals with a lifetime history of self-injuries had significantly higher levels of depression, anxiety and impulsivity as well as significantly lower levels of EI and self-esteem. Higher levels of EI were associated with significantly higher levels of self-esteem, venturesomeness and empathy as well as significantly lower levels of depression, anxiety and impulsivity. Further analysis revealed that trait and state anxiety as well as self-esteem were complete mediators of the association between EI and self-harm risk. Conclusions: Our findings indicate that anxiety and self-esteem might mediate the association between EI and a risk of self-injuries in adolescents with conduct disorder. However, a cross-sectional design of this study limits conclusions on the direction of causality. Longitudinal studies are needed to test validity of our model.

Stressful Life Events, Cognitive Biases, and Symptoms of Depression in Young Adults

Although the link between stressful experiences and depression has been supported in numerous studies, the specific mechanisms of this relationship are still unclear. Cognitive theories of depression postulate that the influence of stress on depression may be modified by cognitive factors. The aim of the present study was to examine the interplay between negative life events, cognitive vulnerability factors, and depressive symptoms. It was hypothesized that the relationship between negative life events and symptoms of depression is shaped by rumination and cognitive biases. The study sample consisted of 108 young adults (19 men and 89 women; M = 20.31; SD = 1.84). Memory bias and attentional bias were assessed using the Attentional Blink Task and the Memory Task, respectively. Rumination and depressive symptoms were assessed via self-report questionnaires. Logistic regression and moderation analyses were conducted to examine the relationship between the study variables. Stressful life events, rumination and memory bias were found to be significantly related to depressive symptoms. Moderation analyses revealed that there is a positive relationship between negative life events and depressive symptoms but only among individuals characterized by an elevated level of rumination and among participants exhibiting negative attentional bias. The results provide further evidence for cognitive models of depression.

Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Predict Depressive Symptom Trajectory from Early to Middle Adolescence

Major depressive disorder begins to increase in early adolescence and is associated with significant impairment (e.g., suicidality). Difficulties in emotion regulation (ER) have been associated with depressive symptoms; however, little research has examined this relation over time beginning in early adolescence. Starting when they were 11-14 years old, 246 adolescents (n_boys = 126; n_white = 158) completed self-report questionnaires on their ER at Time 1 and depressive symptoms every year for 2 years. Results revealed that overall difficulties in ER (and limited access to ER strategies) at Time 1 predicted depressive symptoms both cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Gender moderated this relation cross-sectionally, such that higher overall ER difficulties at Time 1 was more strongly associated with higher depressive symptoms for girls than for boys. These findings suggest that depression prevention efforts should promote adaptive ER in early adolescence, particularly for girls, in order to prevent the increases in depressive symptoms seen into middle adolescence.

Childhood Adversity and Current Stress are related to Pro- and Anti-inflammatory Cytokines in Major Depression

BACKGROUND

Stress during early childhood, for example as a result of maltreatment, can predict inflammation in adulthood. The association of depression with inflammation and current and long-term stress resulting from childhood maltreatment and threatening experiences in the past year has not yet been studied. Therefore, we assessed these variables in a group of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD) and measured levels of the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-6 and the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10. High levels of IL-6 are associated with depression and of IL-10 with stress.

METHODS

We included 44 patients who fulfilled DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for MDD and 44 age- and gender-matched healthy controls. We used Cohen's Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), the list of life-threatening experiences questionnaire (LTE-Q) and the childhood trauma questionnaire (CTQ) to assess the level of stress and analyzed IL-6 and IL-10 cytokines in venous blood plasma.

RESULTS

The patient group showed significantly higher scores on the maltreatment scale LTE-Q (2.7 vs. 1.1; P = 0.001, and the stress scales CTQ (emotional abuse; P = 0.048 and physical neglect; P = 0.002) and PSS (35.2 vs 15.5; P < 0.001) as well as significantly higher levels of IL-6 (1.5pg/ml vs. 0.9pg/ml; P = 0.012). They also had significantly higher levels of IL-10 (1.1pg/ml vs. 0.7pg/ml; P < 0.001). Higher actual stress levels were associated with childhood maltreatment and higher IL-6 (tau = 0.004) and IL-10 (tau = 0.027) levels.

LIMITATIONS

The results need to be replicated in a larger sample, and the study did not evaluate causal relationships. Although the assessment of childhood trauma was retrospective, the CTQ is a well-established assessment instrument.

CONCLUSIONS

The patients with MDD in this study showed an immune activation in response to stress. This study highlights the association of childhood trauma and current and long-term stress with an increased immune activation in MDD.

Parental threats and adolescent depression: The role of emotion dysregulation

Childhood exposure to parental threatening behaviors places adolescents at greater risk for depression. However, the association between parental threatening behaviors and depressive symptoms among trauma-exposed inpatient youth, and potential factors that exacerbate the harmful effects of such parenting, have remained unexplored. One factor that may contribute to depression is low emotional clarity, which is characterized by difficulties recognizing and understanding one's emotions. The current investigation examined the interactive effects of childhood exposure to maternal threatening behaviors and emotional clarity deficits in relation to depressive symptoms among inpatient psychiatric youth who had been exposed to a potentially traumatic event (i.e., exposure to actual or threatened death, serious injury, or sexual violence). Participants (N = 50, M_age = 15.1 years, SD = 0.51, range 12-17) completed measures of emotion dysregulation, childhood exposure to maternal threatening behavior, and depressive symptoms. A significant interaction was found between exposure to maternal threatening behaviors and deficits in emotional clarity in relation to depressive symptom severity. Greater exposure to maternal threatening behaviors was related to more severe depressive symptoms, yet only among children with greater deficits in emotional clarity. Findings underscore the need for interventions that target emotional clarity among trauma-exposed youth who have experienced parental threats.

The temporal association between emotional clarity and depression symptoms in adolescents

INTRODUCTION

Low emotional clarity, that is, problems in understanding and identifying one's own emotions, is generally seen as related to depression. Most empirical studies on this topic focused on the link between low levels of emotional clarity predicting depression problems, fewer studies on depression symptoms predicting low emotional clarity. All studies were restricted to unidirectional associations. The present study evaluated the reciprocal associations between emotional clarity and depression symptoms. Additionally, we tested the role of rumination as a mediator of the links between depression symptoms and emotional clarity.

METHODS

For the main analyses, data of 230 Dutch participants (M_age = 13.40, SD = 2.24; 48% girls) over three time points of a 5-year longitudinal study were used. Depression symptoms, emotional clarity, and rumination were self-reported. Cross-lagged panel analysis was used to test a model of reciprocal associations between depression symptoms and emotional clarity against models of unidirectional associations. The role of rumination as mediator and sex as moderator in the links between depression symptoms and emotional clarity were evaluated in separate analyses on a subsample (n = 151).

RESULTS & CONCLUSIONS

A model of reciprocal associations where depression symptoms and low emotional clarity predict relatively high scores of the other over time offered a good representation of the data. Rumination mediated the link between depression symptoms predicting prospective emotional clarity for both sexes. These findings suggest a vicious cycle between depression symptoms and low emotional clarity. We discuss possible implications of these results for the treatment of depression in youth.

Trait Emotional Intelligence as a Predictor of Adaptive Responses to Positive and Negative Affect During Adolescence

Introduction and aim : The examination of trait emotional intelligence as an important component of adolescent psychological adjustment and coping has received a great deal of attention. Trait emotional intelligence is expected to reduce the vulnerability to emotional problems by reducing mood deterioration in adverse situations. Most research to date has addressed the regulation of negative affective states, with less attention paid to the responses to positive affect. Thus, the aim of this research was to examine the cross-sectional and prospective associations between trait emotional intelligence dimensions (i.e., trait emotional attention, trait emotional clarity, and trait emotional repair), response styles to negative affect (i.e., depressive rumination and distraction) and response to positive affect (i.e., emotion-focused and self-focused positive rumination and dampening) in adolescence.

Methods: A 1-year follow-up study was conducted with a sample of 880 adolescents (52.4% girls) aged 14–17 years old (M = 14.74, SD = 0.68) who were enrolled in 18 high schools in Andalusia (Spain). Participants completed self-report measures of trait emotional intelligence, response to negative affect and response styles to positive affect. To analyse the data, hierarchical regression analyses and path analysis were performed.

Results: Our results showed that high trait emotional attention was cross-sectionally and longitudinally associated with more dampening of positive affect and more depressive rumination. Furthermore, high trait emotional repair was cross-sectionally and longitudinally related to more distraction to negative affect and more self-focused positive rumination. Some gender differences were also found; girls reported higher trait emotional attention, higher dampening, and higher depressive rumination. Furthermore, boys reported higher trait emotional repair, higher self-focused positive rumination and higher distraction to negative affect.

Conclusions and discussion: Our findings provide longitudinal evidence of the relationships between trait emotional intelligence and responses to both positive and negative affect during adolescence. Consequently, interventions designed to promote resilience during adolescence could target the development of more adaptive responses to both negative and positive affect within the framework of school-based emotional education programmes.

Understanding Emotion in Adolescents: A Review of Emotional Frequency, Intensity, Instability, and Clarity

Adolescence is a time of transition from childhood to adulthood during which significant changes occur across multiple domains, including emotional experience. This article reviews the relevant literature on adolescents’ experience of four specific dimensions of emotion: emotional frequency, intensity, instability, and clarity. In an effort to examine how emotional experiences change as individuals approach adulthood, we examine these dimensions across ages 10 to 19, and review how the emotional functioning of adolescents compares to that of adults. In addition, we explore whether and how gender and puberty explain age differences in emotional experience. Finally, we discuss how these findings could inform future research on both the typical trajectory of emotional experience and the development of psychopathology in adolescence.

Affect Intensity Moderates the Association of Emotional Clarity with Emotion Regulation and Depressive Symptoms in Unselected and Treatment-Seeking Samples

Depression is associated with subjective difficulties identifying one's emotions, known as low emotional clarity, but the mediators and moderators of this relationship are not well understood. We hypothesized that the role of emotional clarity in emotion regulation and, in turn, depression depends on individual differences in negative affect intensity. In Study 1, conducted in an unselected sample (N=119), low emotional clarity more strongly predicted depression symptoms among individuals higher in affect intensity. In Study 2, conducted in a clinically diagnosed, treatment-seeking sample (N=245), we examined whether affect intensity moderated an indirect path of clarity through emotion regulation strategy use that has emerged in previous work. When affect intensity was very low, emotional clarity did not predict reappraisal, and when affect intensity was very high, emotional clarity did not predict non-acceptance or experiential avoidance. By contrast, rumination mediated associations of emotional clarity with depressive symptoms regardless of affect intensity. Findings support a process model of low emotional clarity in depression that integrates (1) emotion regulatory mediators and (2) moderation by negative affect intensity. Trait differences in affect intensity may determine whether and how emotional clarity and regulation processes factor into mood psychopathology.

Neural activation during cognitive reappraisal in girls at high risk for depression

OBJECTIVE

Although emotion dysregulation, one of the core features of depression, has long been thought to be a vulnerability factor for major depressive disorder (MDD), surprisingly few functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies have investigated neural correlates of emotion regulation strategies in unaffected high risk individuals.

METHOD

Sixteen high risk (RSK) young women and fifteen matched low risk controls (CTL) were scanned using fMRI while performing an emotion regulation task. During this task, participants were instructed to reappraise their negative emotions elicited by International Affective Picture System images (IAPS). In addition, Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Strategies Scale (DERS) was used to assess participants' emotion dysregulation levels.

RESULTS

Both RSK and CTL individuals show increased amygdala activation in response to negative emotional stimuli, however no difference was found between groups in using cognitive reappraisal strategies and functions of brain regions implicated in cognitive reappraisal. Interestingly, our psychometric test results indicate that high risk individuals are characterised by lower perceived emotional clarity (EC).

CONCLUSION

Results of the current study suggest depression vulnerability may not be linked to the effectiveness of cognitive reappraisal. Alternatively, lower EC may be a vulnerability factor for depression.

Emotional Clarity as a Mechanism Linking Emotional Neglect and Depressive Symptoms during Early Adolescence

The present study examined whether emotional abuse and neglect differentially predicted decreases in emotional clarity, and whether emotional clarity, in turn, predicted increases in depressive symptoms. Participants included 204 early adolescents (52% African-American; 54% female; Mean age= 12.85 years) who completed four assessments with measures of depressive symptoms, emotional clarity, and emotional abuse and neglect. Hierarchical linear regressions indicated that emotional neglect significantly predicted decreases in emotional clarity, whereas emotional abuse did not. Further, mediational analyses revealed that decreases in emotional clarity mediated the relationship between emotional neglect and increases in depressive symptoms. The current study suggests that emotional neglect (more so than emotional abuse) may hinder an individual's ability to identify his or her own emotions, which may increase the risk of depressive symptoms during adolescence. These findings have significant implications for the development of intervention and prevention programs for depression.

Cognitive Vulnerabilities to Depression for Adolescents in Single-Mother and Two-Parent Families

Although research consistently suggests that adolescents in single-mother families are at increased risk for depression, the mechanisms that explain this relationship are unclear. In a community sample of adolescents (N = 368; ages 12-16; 50 % female; 50 % White) and their mothers (42 % single), adolescents completed measures of depressive symptoms, rumination, and depressogenic inferential style at baseline and two yearly follow-ups. Mothers reported on stressful events that occurred in the child's life from birth until baseline. Adolescents raised by single mothers, relative to partnered mothers, experienced more childhood stressors and higher rumination levels at 1-year follow-up. Additionally, higher rumination mediated the relationship between single motherhood and greater youth depressive symptoms at the 2-year follow-up. Clinical implications and developmental considerations are discussed.

Pubertal Development, Emotion Regulatory Styles, and the Emergence of Sex Differences in Internalizing Disorders and Symptoms in Adolescence

Adolescence marks the emergence of sex differences in internalizing symptoms and disorders, with girls at increased risk for depression and anxiety during the pubertal transition. However, the mechanisms through which puberty confers risk for internalizing psychopathology for girls, but not boys, remain unclear. We examined two pubertal indicators (pubertal status and timing) as predictors of the development of emotion regulation styles (rumination and emotional clarity) and depressive and anxiety symptoms and disorders in a three-wave study of 314 adolescents. Path analyses indicated that early pubertal timing, but not pubertal status, predicted increased rumination, but not decreased emotional clarity, in adolescent girls, but not boys. Additionally, rumination mediated the association between early pubertal timing and increased depressive, but not anxiety, symptoms and disorder onset among adolescent girls. These findings suggest that the sex difference in depression may result partly from early maturing girls' greater tendency to develop ruminative styles than boys.

The Relationship Between Family Functioning and Adolescent Depressive Symptoms: The Role of Emotional Clarity

Emotion regulation has been implicated in the etiology of depression. A first step in adaptive emotion regulation involves emotional clarity, the ability to recognize and differentiate one's emotional experience. As family members are critical in facilitating emotional understanding and communication, we examined the impact of family functioning on adolescent emotional clarity and depressive symptoms. We followed 364 adolescents (ages 14-17; 52.5% female; 51.4 % Caucasian, 48.6% African American) and their mothers over 2 years (3 time points) and assessed emotional clarity, depressive symptoms, and adolescents' and mothers' reports of family functioning. Emotional clarity mediated the relationship between adolescents' reports of family functioning and depressive symptoms at all time points cross-sectionally, and according to mothers' reports of family functioning at Time 1 only. There was no evidence of longitudinal mediation for adolescents' or mothers' reports of family functioning. Thus, family functioning, emotional clarity, and depressive symptoms are strongly related constructs during various time points in adolescence, which has important implications for intervention, especially within the family unit.

The Hopelessness Theory of Depression: A Quarter Century in Review

Since the formulation of the hopelessness theory of depression (Abramson, Metalsky, & Alloy, 1989) a quarter century ago, it has garnered considerable interest. The current paper presents a systematic review of this theory including its subsequent elaborations (Rose and Abramson's [1992] developmental elaboration, Abela and Sarin's [2002] weakest-link approach, Panzarella, Alloy, and Whitehouse's [2006] expansion of the hopelessness theory, and the hopelessness theory of suicide [Abramson et al., 2000]), followed by recommendations for future study. Although empirical support was consistently found for several major components of the hopelessness theory, further work is required assessing this theory in relation to clinically significant phenomena. Among the most significant hindrances to advancement in this area is the frequent conceptual confusion between the hopelessness theory and the reformulated learned helplessness theory.

The cyclical nature of depressed mood and future risk: Depression, rumination, and deficits in emotional clarity in adolescent girls

Deficits in emotional clarity, the understanding and awareness of one's own emotions and the ability to label them appropriately, are associated with increased depressive symptoms. Surprisingly, few studies have examined factors associated with reduction in emotional clarity for adolescents, such as depressed mood and ruminative response styles. The present study examined rumination as a potential mediator of the relationship between depressive symptoms and changes in emotional clarity, focusing on sex differences. Participants included 223 adolescents (51.60% female, Mean age = 12.39). Controlling for baseline levels of emotional clarity, initial depressive symptoms predicted decreases in emotional clarity. Further, rumination prospectively mediated the relationship between baseline depressive symptoms and follow-up emotional clarity for girls, but not boys. Findings suggest that depressive symptoms may increase girls' tendencies to engage in repetitive, negative thinking, which may reduce the ability to understand and label emotions, a potentially cyclical process that confers vulnerability to future depression.

Deficits in Emotional Clarity and Vulnerability to Peer Victimization and Internalizing Symptoms Among Early Adolescents

Peer victimization is a significant risk factor for a range of negative outcomes during adolescence, including depression and anxiety. Recent research has evaluated individual characteristics that heighten the risk of experiencing peer victimization. However, the role of emotional clarity, or the ability to understand one's emotions, in being the target of peer victimization remains unclear. Thus, the present study evaluated whether deficits in emotional clarity increased the risk of experiencing peer victimization, particularly among adolescent girls, which, in turn, contributed to prospective levels of depressive and anxiety symptoms. In the present study, 355 early adolescents (ages 12-13; 53% female; 51% African American) who were part of the Adolescent Cognition and Emotion project completed measures of emotional clarity, depressive symptoms, and anxiety symptoms at baseline, and measures of peer victimization, depressive symptoms, and anxiety symptoms at follow-up. Moderation analyses indicated that deficits in emotional clarity predicted greater peer victimization among adolescent girls, but not adolescent boys. Moderated mediation analyses revealed that deficits in emotional clarity contributed to relational peer victimization, which, in turn, predicted prospective levels of depressive and anxiety symptoms among adolescent girls, but not boys. These findings indicate that deficits in emotional clarity represent a significant risk factor for adolescent girls to experience relational peer victimization, which, in turn, contributed to prospective levels of internalizing symptoms. Thus, prevention programs should target deficits in emotional clarity to prevent peer victimization and subsequent internalizing symptoms among adolescent girls.

Cognitive and interpersonal vulnerability to suicidal ideation: a weakest link approach

In contrast with traditional models of risk for suicidal ideation that combine multiple vulnerability components into one composite measure, weakest link perspectives posit that individuals are as vulnerable as their most vulnerable component (or "weakest link"). Such a perspective has been applied to depression, but has not been evaluated with respect to suicidal ideation. Thus, the goal of the present study was to apply a weakest link perspective to the study of suicidal ideation. We hypothesized that an individual's "weakest link" among vulnerability components from the hopelessness theory (HT) and interpersonal psychological theory of suicide (IPTS) would interact with high levels of stress to predict increases in suicidal ideation over a 6-week period better than the traditional conceptualizations of HT or IPTS. Participants were 171 college students who completed measures of cognitive vulnerability, stress, and suicidal ideation twice over a period of 6 weeks. Bayesian regression analyses supported our hypotheses. The data fit the weakest link model using HT and IPTS components better than traditional conceptualizations of HT and IPTS. This study implies that weakest link models from depression may be useful in understanding which individuals are most vulnerable to experiencing suicidal ideation in the context of stress.

Emotional intelligence and psychological maladjustment in adolescence: a systematic review

The study of emotional intelligence (EI) and its association with psychological maladjustment in adolescence is a new and active area of research. However, the diverse range of EI measurements and aspects of psychological maladjustment examined make it difficult to synthesize the findings and apply them to practice. Therefore, we conducted a systematic review to summarize the relationship between EI and adolescents' emotional problems, eating disorder symptoms, addictions, and maladaptive coping. Using English and Spanish keywords, we identified 32 studies that found a negative association between EI and internalizing problems, depression, and anxiety. EI was also associated with less substance abuse and with better coping strategies. These associations differed slightly depending on whether EI was evaluated based on self-reporting or by testing maximum performance. We highlight methodological limitations in the literature on EI and adolescence, and we discuss potentially important areas for future research.

A Prospective Examination of Emotional Clarity, Stress Responses, and Depressive Symptoms During Early Adolescence

This study examined the proposal that difficulty understanding one's emotional experiences (i.e., deficits in emotional clarity) would interfere with the formulation of adaptive responses to interpersonal stress, which would then predict depressive symptoms. This process was examined across 3 years (fourth to sixth grade) during early adolescence. Participants included 636 youth (338 girls, 298 boys; X̅ age in fourth grade = 9.95, SD = .37) who completed measures assessing emotional clarity, stress responses, and depressive symptoms. Consistent with the hypothesized model, path analyses revealed that maladaptive interpersonal stress responses partially mediated the prospective contribution of deficits in emotional clarity to depressive symptoms. These findings implicate impairment in emotional understanding as a precursor to emerging interpersonal and psychological difficulties during a developmental stage of heightened vulnerability to depression, the transition to adolescence.

Pubertal timing and vulnerabilities to depression in early adolescence: differential pathways to depressive symptoms by sex

Although research implicates pubertal processes in the emergence of the sex difference in depression during adolescence, few studies have examined how cognitive and affective vulnerabilities influence the effect of pubertal timing on depressive symptoms. The current study prospectively examined whether early pubertal timing predicted increases in depressive symptoms among adolescents with more negative cognitive styles and lower emotional clarity, and whether this risk was specific to adolescent girls. In a diverse sample of 318 adolescents, early pubertal timing predicted increases in depressive symptoms among adolescent boys and girls with more negative cognitive styles and adolescent girls with poor emotional clarity. These findings suggest that earlier pubertal maturation may heighten the risk of depression for adolescents with pre-existing vulnerabilities to depression, and that early maturing adolescent girls with lower levels of emotional clarity may be particularly vulnerable to depressive symptoms, representing one pathway through which the sex difference in depression may emerge.