Identifying Cognitive and Interpersonal Predictors of Adolescent Depression

Abstract Emerging research has begun to examine cognitive and interpersonal predictors of stress and subsequent depres-sion in adolescents. This research is critical as cognitive and interpersonal vulnerability factors likely shape expectations, perspectives, and interpretations of a given situation prior to the onset of a stressor. In the current study, adolescents (n= 157; boys=64, girls=93), ages 12 to 18, participated in a 6-month, multi-wave longitudinal study examining the impact of negative cognitive style, self-criticism, and dependency on stress and depression. Results of time-lagged, idiographic multilevel analyses indicate that depressogenic attributional styles (i.e., composite score and weakest link approach) and self-criticism predict dependent interpersonal, but not noninterpersonal stress. Moreover, the occurrence of stress mediates the relationship between cognitive vulnerability and depressive symptoms over time. At the same time, self-criticism predicts above and beyond depressogenic attribu-tional styles (i.e., composite and weakest link approach). In contrast to our hypotheses, dependency does not contribute to the occurrence of stress, and additionally, no gender differ-ences emerge. Taken together, the findings suggest that self-criticism may be a particularly damaging vulnerability factor in adolescence, and moreover, it may warrant greater attention in the context of psychotherapeutic interventions