Perceived support from adult family members was negatively associated with depressive symptoms, and negative interactions with police were positively associated with depressive symptoms in a study of 707 adolescents from an urban high school.
However, these relationships varied based on sex, race, and social class, Pratyusha Tummala-Narra, Ph.D., and Nina Sathasivam-Rueckert of Boston College, Chestnut Hill, Mass., reported in the February issue of the Journal of Adolescence.
For example, multiracial adolescents reported significantly higher levels of depressive symptoms than did African American and white adolescents, and a significantly higher level of depressive symptoms was reported by girls than boys. Also, boys were more likely than girls to turn to family members for help, as were adolescents from higher socioeconomic backgrounds.
Those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds were more likely to turn to adults at school for help, the investigators said (J. Adolescence 2013;36:209-19).
With respect to interactions with police, boys reported significantly more negative interactions than girls, and multiracial adolescents reported significantly more negative interactions than Asian adolescents.
As for the relationship between perceived adult support and depressive symptoms, perceived support from adult family members was a significant predictor of adolescents’ depressive symptoms, but perceived support from adults at school was not. Higher levels of perceived support from adult family members were a significant predictor of lower levels of depressive symptomology for girls.
This wasn’t true for boys, but lower levels of perceived support from adult family members was negatively correlated with higher levels of depressive symptoms for both boys and girls. This association was stronger for girls, the investigators said.
Perceived support from adults at school was not significantly related to depressive symptoms for boys or girls.
Additional analyses demonstrated that perceived support from adult family members was negatively associated with depressive symptomology in Latino, Asian, and multiracial adolescents.
Specifically, the investigators found that higher levels of perceived support from adult family members was a significant predictor of lower levels of depressive symptoms for Latino, Asian, and multiracial participants.
In the overall sample, negative interactions with police were associated with higher levels of depressive symptomology. Adolescent girls who reported higher levels of negative interactions with police were more likely to report more depressive symptoms, but negative contact with police was not a significant predictor of depressive symptoms for boys.
With respect to race, however, negative interactions with police were a predictor of higher levels of depressive symptoms only for Asian adolescents, and with respect to socioeconomic status, a greater degree of negative interactions with police was a significant predictor of higher levels of depressive symptoms for those from lower socioeconomic backgrounds.
Study participants were 9th and 10th graders aged 12-18 years (80% aged 14-15 years) from a diverse high school in a large urban center in the northeastern United States. They were surveyed using components of the Polling for Justice Survey to assess aspects of perceived adult support, and also completed the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale for Children to measure signs and symptoms of depression.
The findings raise important questions about how different subgroups of adolescents negotiate interactions with adults in their lives, and about their decisions to seek support from adults. An example is that although boys were more likely than girls to turn to family member for help, girls who sought help from family members reported lower depressive symptoms.
"While family support is important for both boys and girls, girls may be less likely to seek the support from family members that may be needed to cope with stress," they said.
Additionally, the findings indicate that youth from lower social class backgrounds might be especially vulnerable to depressive symptoms after negative encounters with police.
This study was limited by the focus on adolescents from just one urban high school and on the reliance on self-report measures. Still, the findings suggest that researchers and practitioners should consider the "unique ecological context" of adolescents, as well as their social locations, when addressing mental health needs, the investigators said.
"Our findings warrant further research on the experiences of vulnerable groups of adolescents ... and on how youth cope with stress and negotiate seeking help from adults," they added, noting that ecologically focused mental health interventions for adolescents dealing with issues such as depression should be tailored to the specific needs of subgroups, and clinicians should attend to adolescents’ experiences with adults in a variety of contexts.
The research was supported by the Collaborative Fellows Grant at Boston College. The authors reported having no conflicts or disclosures.