Interpersonal Sensitivity, Romantic Stress, and the Prediction of Depression: A Study of Inner-City, Minority Adolescent Girls

• NCJ Number: 214991
• Journal: Journal of Youth and Adolescence Volume: 35 Issue: 3 Dated: June 2006 Pages: 469-478
• Author(s): Christie J. Rizzo; Shannon E. Daley; Brent H. Gunderson
• Date Published: June 2006
• Length: 10 pages
• Sponsoring Agency: Zumberger Individual Research Grant; Wallis Annenberg Fellowship
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study examined the role of interpersonal sensitivity in stress and depression linked with romantic relationships in a sample of 55 adolescent girls who were students in an inner-city high school.

Abstract

Interpersonal sensitivity, defined as "a pervasive and heightened attention and response to interactions with others" was found to be a risk factor for depression derived from stress in romantic relationships among the teenage girls of this study. Girls with higher levels of interpersonal sensitivity exhibited greater depression following both persistent romantic stress, such as experiencing a low-quality romantic relationship, and periodic romantic stress, such as having an argument or conflict with a partner. These findings are consistent with prior research that reports the negative qualities of romantic relationships associated with depressive symptoms in adolescents. The current study further indicates that interpersonal sensitivity increases an adolescent girl's vulnerability to depression only under the stress of a romantic relationship, but not under stress in other interpersonal domains. This difference may reflect the importance of romantic relationships during adolescence. Participants were 55 10th-grade girls who began the study with a mean age of 16.29. Seventy-four percent of the girls were Hispanic-American, and 26 percent were African-American. Depression was assessed at Time 1 (lifetime history and current functioning at the initial interview) and at Time 2 (depressive symptoms that occurred during the 6 months between interviews). Interpersonal sensitivity was assessed with the Interpersonal Sensitivity Measure (Boyce and Parker, 1989). Periodic interpersonal stress was measured with the Episodic Stress Interview; and chronic interpersonal stress was measured with the Chronic Strain Interview (Hammen et al., 1987). Bivariate associations between measures were examined by using Pearson product-moment correlations. 4 tables, 1 figure, and 64 references