Biomedical subjects

J R Seeley

Publications and source records attributed to J R Seeley.

65 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

PubMed1993

A brief measure of loneliness suitable for use with adolescents.

An 8-item loneliness scale was administered to a sample of high school students (N = 1,710) twice, about one year apart. The scale exhibited good internal consistency reliability (alphas of 0.78 and 0.79, respectively), was relatively independent of gender effects, and demonstrated evidence of construct validity. Factor analysis of the items yielded a two-factor solution which met methodological criteria, but over-all the data suggested a method artifact, e.g., positively and negatively worded items factored separately. Examination of the two factors indicated the subscale of four negative items (lack companionship, no longer close, left out, feel isolated) had an alpha reliability of .77, correlated .89 with the total scale score, and exhibited virtually an identical pattern of associations with a set of theoretically relevant variables as the full scale. This four-item scale may be useful in epidemiologic surveys in which over-all response burden is an issue.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1991

Age and depression: unique and shared effects.

The degree to which psychosocial variables associated with depression were also associated with age was examined in 3 samples of community residents 50 years of age or older (N = 4,617). Most of the expected concomitants of depression were found. With only a few exceptions, age was not correlated with depression-related psychosocial variables. Rather, age was most strongly associated with levels in neuropsychological and psychophysiological functioning. In addition, the magnitudes of the correlations in women compared with men and in young-old age groups compared with old-age groups were examined. A number of significant differences emerged, and their implications for theories of depression are noted.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1991

Screening for adolescent depression: a comparison of depression scales.

The ability of two depression scales, the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), to identify cases of DSM-III-R major depression and dysthymia was investigated in a large, community sample of high school students. Receiver operating characteristics analyses indicated that different caseness criteria should be used for boys and girls for both the CES-D and the BDI. Internal consistency-reliability and sensitivity and specificity for detecting current episodes of current depression and dysthymia were adequate and comparable to those found with adult samples, but both the CES-D and the BDI generated many false positives. Multiple screening using the "serial" strategy increased positive predictive power substantially for both the CES-D and the BDI, whereas using the "parallel" strategy had very little effect on the efficacy of the two screeners. The results indicate that neither the BDI nor the CES-D should be used by themselves as methods for case ascertainment in either epidemiological or experimental studies, although the BDI does function somewhat better than the CES-D as a screener.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1991

Comorbidity of unipolar depression: I. Major depression with dysthymia.

The degree of current and lifetime comorbidity between major depressive disorder (MDD) and dysthymia (DY) was examined in large community samples of older adolescents (n = 1,710) and adults (n = 2,060). DY was highly comorbid with MDD (lifetime odds ratio of 3.4 for adolescents and 1.6 for adults) and was more likely to precede than to follow MDD, especially in persons who became depressed early in life. MDD was by far the more frequent form of depression: Approximately 80% of the depressed persons experienced only MDD, 10% experienced only DY, and 10% experienced both MDD and DY. The large number of persons who had became depressed twice experienced MDD in the 2nd episode, regardless of the nature of the 1st depression. History of depression was associated with a greater probability for other mental disorders in both adolescents and adults; however, the rates of comorbidity for MDD did not differ from rates for DY or for both MDD and DY.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1991

Comorbidity of unipolar depression: II. Comorbidity with other mental disorders in adolescents and adults.

The current and lifetime comorbidity of depressive (i.e., major depressive disorder and dysthymia) with other common mental disorders was examined in community samples of older adolescents (n = 1,710) and adults (n = 2,060). Current and lifetime histories of depression in the adolescents were highly comorbid with several other mental disorders. The adults had a lower but statistically significant degree of comorbidity, primarily with substance use disorder. Depression in both groups was more likely to occur after the other disorder rather than to precede it. Comorbidity did not affect the duration or severity of depression. Comorbidity in the adolescents was associated with greater frequency of suicidal behavior and treatment seeking. The findings suggest that early-onset depression is associated with a greater degree of comorbidity and may represent a more serious form of the disorder.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1990

Are people changed by the experience of having an episode of depression? A further test of the scar hypothesis.

The purpose of this study was to identify characteristics of individuals before and after their first depressive episode. Subjects were 49 older persons assessed before and after their first depressive episode on depression-related psychosocial variables. The control group consisted of 351 never-depressed individuals. Consistent with previous findings, patients were more likely to be younger, female, and mildly depressed both before and after the episode. In addition, they were more likely to be employed. Following an episode of depression, the recovered patients described their social skills and health as poorer and their interpersonal dependency as greater than the controls. However, on an experiment-wise basis, the number of significant differences were no greater than expected by chance. The stress activation model was examined but did not appreciably enhance the results. Results suggest that most of the psychosocial variables associated with depression are state dependent.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1990

Dimensionality of coping and its relation to depression.

The dimensionality of coping, as measured by 65 items from 3 commonly used instruments, and the relation of coping and stress to concurrent and future depression were studied in a community sample of 742 older (greater than or equal to 50 years old) adults. Measures of coping, stress, and depression were obtained at 2 time points over a 2-year period. Depression was assessed by symptom checklist and by diagnostic interview. Three coping factors--Cognitive Self-Control, Ineffective Escapism, and Solace Seeking--that had adequate psychometric properties and accounted for 25% of the total item variance were identified. Ineffective Escapism was associated with current depression and had a direct and interactive effect on future depression, exacerbating the negative impact of stress rather than acting as a buffer. Although Cognitive Self-Control was unrelated to either concurrent or future depression, Solace Seeking significantly buffered the effect of stress in predicting a future diagnosis of depression. Stress and initial depression level predicted both measures of future depression. Gender (being female) predicted the future diagnosis of depression but not the increase of depressive symptoms.

Adaptation, Psychological↗

PubMed1989

An in-depth analysis of male adolescent smokeless tobacco users: interviews with users and their fathers.

Male adolescent smokeless tobacco (ST) users (N = 191) were extensively interviewed, then followed over a 6-month period with monthly telephone interviews. In addition, their fathers (N = 137) were interviewed by telephone. Based on these data, ST use appears similar to cigarette smoking with respect to onset, patterns of use, social influences, attempts to quit, and indications of addiction. Onset and continued use of ST largely occur in a social context. Parents are reportedly aware (73%) of their sons' ST use but appear tolerant. The great majority of S's (92%) believe that there is some health risk associated with ST use. Over half report noticing ST-related changes in their oral cavities, although their dentists generally had not discussed ST use with them. Over one-third of the current users report unsuccessful quit attempts. ST use appears to be part of a more general pattern of substance use, including marijuana and alcohol.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Lifetime comorbidity among anxiety disorders and between anxiety disorders and other mental disorders in adolescents.

We examine the lifetime comorbidity among anxiety disorders, and between anxiety disorders and other mental disorders, in a large (n = 1,507) community sample of high school students on whom extensive diagnostic data were available. Three diagnostic groups were formed: those with a lifetime anxiety disorder (n = 134); those with a nonanxiety disorder (n = 510); and those who had never met criteria for a mental disorder (n = 863). The intra-anxiety comorbidity rate was relatively low (18.7%), and was strongly associated with being female (92%). The lifetime comorbidity between anxiety and other mental disorders (primarily MDD) was substantial (73.1%) and was not associated with being female.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Major depression in community adolescents: age at onset, episode duration, and time to recurrence.

OBJECTIVE: This paper presents retrospective and prospective data regarding time course parameters of major depressive disorder (MDD) in community adolescents (14 to 18 years old): time to onset and recovery and, among those who recovered, time to recurrence. METHOD: Diagnostic interviews were conducted with 1,508 randomly selected high school students. Three hundred sixty-two had experienced at least one past or current episode of MDD. RESULTS: Mean age at onset of first episode was 14.9 (SD = 2.8). Early MDD onset was associated with female gender and suicidal ideation. MDD episode duration ranged from 2 to 520 weeks, with a mean of 26.4 weeks (SE = 3.3) and a median of 8.0 weeks. Longer episodes were observed in those whose depression occurred early (at or before age 15), whose depression had been accompanied by suicidal ideation, and for whom treatment was sought. Of the adolescents who recovered, 5% relapsed within 6 months, 12% within 1 year, and approximately 33% within 4 years. Shorter time to recurrence was associated with prior suicidal ideation and attempt and with later first onset. CONCLUSIONS: Risk of MDD is low in childhood, increasing substantially with adolescence. The majority of episodes in community adolescents are relatively brief, although the risk of recurrence is substantial. Suicidal behaviors are important mediators of episode duration and of recurrence.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Are adolescents changed by an episode of major depression?

OBJECTIVE: This study examined whether adolescents having a first onset of major depression are changed by the experience (i.e., does having an episode of depression result in residual effects that did not exist before the episode?). METHOD: Among 1,507 community adolescents assessed at two time points approximately 1 year apart 45 experienced and recovered from a first episode of depression between the two assessments. These adolescents were contrasted with never-depressed control subjects on an array of depression-related psychosocial variables before and after the episode. RESULTS: Psychosocial scars (characteristics evident after but not before the episode) included internalizing behavior problems, stressful major life events, excessive emotional reliance on others, cigarette smoking and subsyndromal depression symptoms. Both before and after the episode, the depressed adolescents reported an elevated level of physical health problems. CONCLUSIONS: More scars were found in the present study than in previous research with formerly depressed adults. This is consistent with the hypothesis that early-onset depression is a more pernicious form of the disorder that may impact adolescents more severely than adults.

Adaptation, Psychological↗