Early adversity and depressive symptoms among early adolescent girls: the mediating role of exposure to recent interpersonal acute stress

Catherine B Stroud*, Frances R Chen, Erin E Dunning, Julia Cheng, Carey Marr, Suzanne Vrshek-Schallhorn

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

Early adversity confers risk for depression in part through its association with recent (i.e., proximal) acute stress. However, it remains unresolved whether: a) early adversity predicts increases in recent acute stress over time; b) all - or only certain types - of recent events mediate the relationship between early adversity and depression; and c) early adversity places individuals at greater risk for depression via greater exposure to independent (i.e., fateful) interpersonal events or via greater generation of dependent (i.e., partially self-initiated) interpersonal events (i.e., stress generation) or both. These questions were examined in a 3-wave longitudinal study of early adolescent girls (N = 125; M = 12.35 years [SD = .77]) with no history of diagnosable depression using contextual life stress and diagnostic interviews. Path analyses indicated that increases in past-year acute interpersonal, but not non-interpersonal, stress mediated the link between early adversity and depressive symptoms. The mediating role of interpersonal events was limited to independent ones, suggesting increases in interpersonal event exposure, not interpersonal stress generation, acted as a mediator. Finally, findings support prior evidence that early adversity may not directly predict future depressive symptoms. Implications for understanding the role of recent stress in the association between early adversity and adolescent depression are discussed.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1272-1287
Number of pages16
JournalDevelopment and Psychopathology
Volume35
Issue number3
Early online date8 Nov 2021
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2023

Keywords

  • CHILDHOOD ADVERSITIES
  • EVENTS
  • GENERATION
  • LIFE-STRESS
  • MALTREATMENT
  • MENTAL-HEALTH
  • MODEL
  • ONSET
  • PREDICTORS
  • PSYCHIATRIC-DISORDERS
  • adolescents
  • depression
  • early adversity
  • interpersonal stress
  • stressful life events

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