Depression vulnerability in children: The role of cognitive-interpersonal variables

Historically, research in childhood depression has been largely atheoretical in nature and has involved the individual examination of isolated psychosocial realms. More recently, several developmental psychopathologists have articulated complex, transactional models of depression, based in part on reconceptualizations of parent-child attachment in terms of internal working models of relationships. Such approaches provide a solid theoretical basis for understanding the formation of depression vulnerability, yet empirical advances have been limited.;In the present study, the construct of internal working models was operationalized from a cognitive perspective. Measures of cognitive representations of self, family, and peers were developed, and the relations among children's representations, interpersonal functioning, and affective symptoms were examined. 161 school children between the ages of 7 and 12 completed scales of cognitions and mood states. Social adjustment was assessed via self report of problem-solving styles and adult ratings of social behavior and sociometric status.;Results upheld the internal consistency, construct validity, and cross-temporal stability of the proposed measures. Strong correspondences were found among representations of self, family, and peers. Moreover, negative representations were associated with social impairment, including decreased prosocial and increased aversive behavior, dysfunctional transactions, and peer rejection. Children who experienced relatively higher levels of depression manifested disturbances in both cognitive and behavioral aspects of interpersonal relationships. Longitudinal analyses yielded a directional pathway from negative representations of self and family to subsequent symptoms. Finally, structural equation analysis supported an integrated model of interpersonal relatedness and depression.;Findings confirmed the formation of stable and coherent generalized representations of relationships. Furthermore, initial linkages were drawn among negative interpersonal cognitions, problematic peer relationships, and depression, suggesting that working models of self and the social world may, indeed, represent an important mediator of psychosocial adjustment. Implications for etiological models of depression and therapeutic interventions with socially-impaired and depressed youngsters are discussed.