Depression and Perception of Family Cohesion Levels and Social Support from Friends in Emerging Adulthood at a University Mental Health Clinic

Emerging adulthood is identified as a period of transition and uncertainty that occurs between the stages of adolescence and adulthood, often from ages 18-25. During this period, mental health issues are quite prominent, especially symptoms of depression. Previous research has explored what can ease the stress of depressive symptoms, and social support has had resounding effects. The present study used secondary analysis of data from 372 therapy-seeking individuals at a university-based family clinic to evaluate how perceived levels of familial cohesion and social support from friends are associated with depressive symptoms during emerging adulthood and whether or not age moderated the association. The results of this study show significant associations between familial cohesion as predicted, and social support from friends but in an unexpected direction. Age did not appear to have any significant associations. Potential future research as well as clinical implications are discussed