Characteristics of stressful life events precipitating first episode depression in adolescents
Main Article Content
Abstract
Objective: This study aimed to identify the characteristics of stressful life events that precipitated firs episode depression in adolescence and also intended to study the relationship between demographic factors and specific characteristics of stressful life events. Secondary aim was to determine the relationship between these life events and diagnosis, as well as suicidal ideation.
Methods: This was a retrospective chart review study. The authors collected data of patients aged between 10-19 years old who visited the psychiatric department outpatient department at Vajira Hospital between 2008-2017 and who had been diagnosed with depression for the first time. All the gathered data were analyzed and interpreted by using SPSS version.
Results: Our study had 298 subjects. The majority of them were female (189 patients, 65.4%). The common stressful life events that precipitated first episode depression in adolescence were family conflict problems (39.4%), academic problems (20.9%), romantic relationship problems (19.2%) and peer relationship problems (18.8%). Family conflict problems were significantly related to dysthymia in adolescence (p= 0.003). Romantic relationship problems were more likely to precipitate depression in females (p= 0.03) and late adolescence (p<0.001). Moreover, romantic relationship problems were significantly related to adjustment disorder with depressed mood (p<0.001) and suicidal ideation (p= 0.01). Conflict with teachers was more common among boys (p= 0.02) and early adolescence (p= 0.01).
Conclusion: The top three stressful life events those precipitated first episode depression in adolescence were family conflict problems, academic problems and romantic relationship problems. In particular, family conflict problems were associated with dysthymia. The romantic relationship problems were related to adjustment disorder with depressed mood and suicidal ideation. This research partly reflects the characteristics of stressors that triggered depression in adolescents in Bangkok. Therefore, these problems need to be addressed, in order to reduce incidence of adolescent depression.
Article Details
References
2. World Health Organization. depression [Internet]. 2017 [cited 2017 Sep 9]. Available from: https://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs369/en/
3. Age limits and adolescents. Paediatr Child Health. 2003; 8(9):577-8.
4. Psychology Today. Adolescent [Internet].2017 [cited 2017 Sep 19]. Available from: https://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/adolescence
5. Anderson SL and Teicher MH. Stress, sensitive periods and maturational events in adolescent depression. Trends Neurosci. 2008; 31:183-91.
6. Mezulis A, Salk R, Hyde JS, Priess-Groben HA, and Simonson J. Affective, biological, and cognitive predictors of depressive symptom trajectories in adolescence. J Abnorm Child Psychol. 2014; 42:539-50.
7. Wells VE, Deykin EY, Klerman GL. Risk factors for depression in adolescence. Psychiatric developments. U.S. National Library of Medicine; 1985.
8. Supachai T, Orapun T, Teerasakdi S, Sucheera P. Factors influencing depression among early adolescents in extended educational opportunity school of samutsakhon Province. J Psychiatr Assoc Thailand. 2012; 57(3): 283-94.
9. Monroe SM, Rohde P, Seeley JR, Lewinsohn PM. Life events and depression in adolescence: relationship loss as a prospective risk factor for first onset of major depressive disorder. J Abnorm Psychol. 1999; 108:606-14.
10. Lewinsohn PM, Allen NB, Seeley JR and Gotlib IH. First onset versus recurrence of depression: differential processes of psychosocial risk. J Abnorm Psychol. 1999; 108:483-9.
11. Sadock BJ, Sadock Va and Ruiz P. Major depression and bipolar disorder. In: Sadock BJ, Sadock Va and Ruiz P, editors. Kaplan & Sadock’s synopsis of psychiatry. 11th ed.New York: Wolters Kluver; 2015. p.347-86.
12. Brent DA. Depressive disorder. In: Martin A, Bloch MH, Volkmar FR, editors. Lewis’s child and adolescent psychiatry. Philadelphia: Wolters Kluver; 2018. p.473-482.
13. Chaveepojnkamjorn W, Pichainarong N, Adthasangsri V, Satitvipawee P, Prasertsong C. Youths and depression: depressive evaluation among senior high school students, Nonthaburi Province. J Sci Tech Maha Univers. 2016; 35(5): 530-7.
14. Kar SK, Choudhury A, Singh AP. Understanding normal development of adolescent sexuality: a bumpy ride. J Hum Reprod Sci. 2015; 8(2):70-4.
15. McGuinness TM, Dyer JG, Wade EH. Gender differences in adolescent depression. J Psychosoc Nurs Ment Health Serv. 2012; 50(12):17-20.
16. Thapar A, Collishaw S, Pine DS, Thapar AK. Depression in adolescence. Lancet. 2012; 379(9820): 1056–67.
17. Li CE, DiGiuseppe R, Froh J. The roles of sex, gender, and coping in adolescent depression. Adolescence. 2006; 41(163):409-15.
18. McLeod S. Erik Erikson's stages of psychosocial development [Internet]. 2018 [cited 2018 June 18]. Available from: https://www.simplypsychology.org/ Erik-Erikson.html#references.
19. Luangchaikul W. Social learning processes leading to premature sex: a case study of undergraduate students [dissertation]. Bangkok: Srinakarinwirot University; 2013.