Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Inferential Style, School Teachers, And Depressive Symptoms In College Students., Caroline M. Pittard, Patrick Pössel, Timothy Lau

Patrick Pössel

Depressive symptoms affect around half of students at some point during college. According to the hopelessness theory of depression, making negative inferences about stressful events is a vulnerability for developing depression. Negative and socio-emotional teaching behavior can be stressors that are associated with depression in school students. First-time college freshmen completed the Cognitive Style Questionnaire (CSQ), Teaching Behavior Questionnaire (TBQ), and Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D). While completing the TBQ, participants reported on a teacher from prior education to college. Multiple regression analysis found significant effects of the independent variables (four teaching behavior types, inferential style, and interactions …

The Interrelations Between Spiritual Well-Being, Pain Interference And Depressive Symptoms In Patients With Multiple Sclerosis, Sheri A. Nsamenang, Jameson K. Hirsch, Raluca Topciu, Andrew D. Goodman, Paul R. Duberstein

Jameson K. Hirsch

Depressive symptoms are common in individuals with multiple sclerosis (MS), and are frequently exacerbated by pain; however, spiritual well-being may allow persons with MS to more effectively cope with pain-related deficits in physical and role functioning. We explored the associations between spiritual well-being, pain interference and depressive symptoms, assessing each as a potential mediator, in eighty-one patients being treated for MS, who completed self-report measures: Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being Scale, Pain Effects Scale, and Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale Revised. At the bivariate level, spiritual well-being and its subscale of meaning and peace were negatively associated …

Functional Impairment, Illness Burden, And Depressive Symptoms In Older Adults: Does Type Of Social Relationship Matter?, Joshua P. Hatfield, Jameson K. Hirsch, Jeffrey M. Lyness

Jameson K. Hirsch

Objective: The nature of interpersonal relationships, whether supportive or critical, may affect the association between health status and mental health outcomes. We examined the potential moderating effects of social support, as a buffer, and family criticism, as an exacerbating factor, on the association between illness burden, functional impairment and depressive symptoms.

Methods: Our sample of 735 older adults, 65 years and older, was recruited from internal and family medicine primary care offices. Trained interviewers administered the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression, Duke Social Support Inventory, and Family Emotional Involvement and Criticism Scale. Physician-rated assessments of health, including the Karnofsky Performance …

A Longitudinal Study Of Cortical Eeg Activity In Adolescents., Patrick Pössel, Hanna Lo, Anna Fritz, Simone Seemann

Patrick Pössel

Background: The objective of this study is to test Davidson’s, and Heller and Nitschke’s models stating cortical activity in adolescents to be a marker for increased risk for depression. Methods: Alpha activity was measured in 80 adolescents from medial-frontal (F3/4), lateral-frontal (F7/8), and medial-parietal (P3/4) electrodes, as well as self-reported depression and anxiety twice within 12 months. Stepwise hierarchical regression analyses with anxiety as covariate were calculated with alpha asymmetry as predicting variable and depression as target variable and vice versa. Results: Independent of whether anxiety was used as covariate or not, frontal and parietal alpha asymmetry predict depression, but …

Impact Of Comorbidity In Prevention Of Adolescent Depressive Symptoms., Patrick Pössel, Simone Seemann, Martin Hautzinger

Patrick Pössel

Despite the well-known relevance of comorbidity, few studies have examined the impact of comorbid anxiety or externalizing symptoms on the prevention of depressive symptoms in adolescents. To replicate earlier positive effects of a cognitive-behavioral prevention program of depressive symptoms and to test the hypothesis that the prevention program would be less effective in adolescents with comorbid anxiety and externalizing symptoms, a study was conducted involving 301 8th-grade students, randomly divided into an intervention group and a non-intervention control group. The randomized design included baseline, post-intervention, and 6-month follow-up. The prevention program included 10 sessions held in a regular school setting. …

Do Depressive Symptoms Predict The Incidence Of Myocardial Infarction Independent Of Hopelessness?, Patrick Pössel, Amanda M. Mitchell, Kimmo Ronkainen, George A. Kaplan, Jussi Kauhanen, Maarit Valtonen

Patrick Pössel

Depression and hopelessness predict myocardial infarction (MI), but it is unclear whether depression and hopelessness are independent predictors of MI incidents. Hopelessness, depression, and MI incidence rate 18 years later were measured in 2005 men. Cox regressions were conducted with hopelessness and depression serving as individual predictors of MI. Another Cox model examined whether the two predictors predict MI when adjusting for each other. Depression and hopelessness predicted MI in independent regressions but when adjusting for each other, hopelessness, but not depression, predicted MI incidents. Thus, these results suggest that depression and hopelessness are not independent predictors of MI.

Hopelessness The ‘Active Ingredient’? : Associations Of Hopelessness And Depressive Symptoms With Interleukin-6., Amanda M. Mitchell, Patrick Pössel, Elaine Sjögren, Margareta Kristenson

Patrick Pössel

Objective: Previous research has revealed a relationship of depressive symptoms and hopelessness with cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) which are associated with elevated levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6). The objective of this study was to explore whether depressive symptoms and hopelessness are independent predictors of IL-6 levels. Method: Hopelessness, depressive symptoms, and IL-6 were measured in 45 Swedish adults (26 women and 19 men; age range: 31-65 years). Two separated linear regressions were conducted with hopelessness and depressive symptoms serving as individual predictors of IL-6. Another regression analysis examined whether the two predictors predict IL-6 when controlling for each other. The regression coefficients …

Do Depressive Symptoms Mediate The Relationship Between Hopelessness And Diurnal Cortisol Rhythm?, Patrick Pössel, Amanda M. Mitchell, Elaine Sjögren, Margareta Kristenson

Patrick Pössel

Purpose: Research has revealed a well-established relationship of depressive symptoms and hopelessness with a variety of physical illnesses that are associated with a dysfunction of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-axis. The purpose of this study was to test if depressive symptoms mediate the relationship between hopelessness and cortisol, a measure of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal-axis. Methods: Hopelessness, depressive symptoms, and diurnal cortisol rhythm were measured in 257 adults (128 women and 129 men; age range: 20-74 years) in this cross-sectional study. To test the hypothesis, two linear regression analyses and asymmetrical confidence intervals around the regression weights were conducted. A second set of analyses was …

Teaching Behavior Questionnaire : Verifying Factor Structure And Investigating Depressive Symptoms In Catholic Middle And High Schools., Caroline M. Pittard, Patrick Pössel, Rosamond J. Smith

Patrick Pössel

Teaching behavior impacts student psychopathology. This study explored the associations between teaching behavior types and depressive symptoms in students. The Teaching Behavior Questionnaire (TBQ) and the Center for Epidemiological Studies – Depression Scale (CES-D) were completed by 763 middle and 976 high school students from private Catholic schools. In the middle school sample, a confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the four-factor structure of the TBQ previously found in public high schools. As predicted, a two-level hierarchical linear model (HLM) analysis with the high school sample found that only the Negative Teaching Behavior scale of the TBQ was positively related to CES-D …