Child / Adolescent - Depression
Longitudinal Associations between Peer Victimization and Depressive Symptoms Among Offspring of Mothers with a History of MDD
Elana S. Israel, B.A.
Graduate Student
Binghamton University
VESTAL, New York
Brandon E. Gibb, Ph.D.
Professor
Binghamton University
Binghamton, New York
Youth who have mothers with a history of major depressive disorder (MDD) are at high risk of developing the disorder themselves, yet the mechanisms contributing to the intergenerational transmission of depression remain unclear. One hypothesized mechanism is interpersonal stress, which has been shown to be elevated in offspring of mothers with a history of MDD. The goal of this study was to examine the role of a specific form of interpersonal stress, peer victimization, as a potential mechanism of risk for the intergenerational transmission of depression. In doing so, we not only examined the impact of peer victimization on changes in youth depression, but also youth depression on increases in peer victimization, consistent with stress generation models. Finally, we examined whether these relations may differ for girls versus boys. Participants were 251 mother-offspring pairs which included mothers with (n=129) and without (n=122) a history of MDD. Offspring completed assessments of peer victimization (relational and overt) and depressive symptoms, every six months for two years. Using random intercepts cross-lagged panel models (RI-CLPM), we were able to separate between-subject versus within-subject effects over time. Overall, results were stronger for relational victimization than for overt victimization. At the between-subject level, offspring with mothers with a history of MDD had higher levels of depressive symptoms across the follow-up than offspring of mothers with no depression history. Furthermore, among girls but not boys, offspring of mothers with a history of MDD had elevated levels of relational and overt victimization across the follow-up. Turning next to within-subject effects, fluctuations around offspring’s own average levels of relational victimization predicted prospective increases or decreases in youths’ levels of depressive symptoms relative to their own average. The reverse direction of influence (stress generation) was also significant, in that fluctuations in depressive symptom levels predicted prospective future change in youth relational victimization. These associations were stronger for girls than for boys. These results suggest that offspring of mothers with a history of MDD are more likely to experience heightened depressive symptoms and peer victimization, particularly relational victimization, and particularly among girls. Further, from a person-centered approach, these results indicate that variation in individual levels of relational victimization and depressive symptoms predict one another transactionally, again particularly for girls, thus contributing to a vicious cycle of depression risk.