Recent research demonstrates that it is the quality rather than the frequency of social networking experiences that places individuals at risk for negative mental health outcomes. However, the mechanisms that account for this association have yet to be examined. Accordingly, this study examined whether the tendency to negatively compare oneself with others while using Facebook leads to increases in depressive symptoms, and whether this association is mediated by increases in rumination. A sample of 268 college-age young adults completed an initial online survey and a 3-week follow-up. Path analysis was used to test the hypothesized model, wherein negative social comparison on Facebook was predicted to be associated with increases in rumination, which, in turn, was predicted to be associated with depressive symptoms. The model controlled for general social comparison to test the specific effect of social comparison on Facebook over and above the tendency to engage in social comparison in general. Results indicated that the hypothesized mediation effect was significant. In sum, in the context of social networking, negatively comparing oneself with others may place individuals at risk for rumination and, in turn, depressive symptoms. Findings increase understanding of the mechanisms that link social networking use to negative mental health outcomes and suggest a continued emphasis on examining the specific processes that take place in the context of social networking that may be pathogenic.

Two studies examined associations between social networking and depressive symptoms among youth. In Study 1, 384 participants (68% female; mean age = 20.22 years, SD = 2.90) were surveyed. In Study 2, 334 participants (62% female; M age = 19.44 years, SD = 2.05) were surveyed initially and 3 weeks later. Results indicated that depressive symptoms were associated with quality of social networking interactions, not quantity. There was some evidence that depressive rumination moderated associations, and both depressive rumination and corumination were associated with aspects of social networking usage and quality. Implications for understanding circumstances that increase social networking, as well as resulting negative interactions and negative affect are discussed.

Research suggests the ability to differentiate discrete emotions protects against psychopathology. Little is known about daily processes through which negative and positive emotion differentiation (NED, PED) influence depressive symptomatology. We examined NED and PED as moderators of associations between daily processes (negative/positive experiences, brooding, and savoring) and daily depressive symptoms. Hypotheses were tested using intensive longitudinal techniques in two samples oversampled for depression: 157 young adults (Study 1) and 50 veterans recruited from VA primary care (Study 2). In Study 1, low NED predicted stronger associations between daily brooding and depressive symptoms. In Study 2, low NED predicted stronger reactivity to daily negative events. In both studies, low PED strengthened salutary effects of positive experiences and savoring on symptoms. Largely consistent across demographically divergent samples, results suggest both low NED and PED enhance effects of daily events and perseverative self-focus on fluctuations in depressive symptoms.

Background Amotivation, or decisional anhedonia, is a prominent and disabling feature of depression. However, this aspect of depression remains understudied, and no prior work has applied objective laboratory tests of motivation in both unipolar and bipolar depression. Methods We assessed motivation deficits using a Progressive Ratio Task (PRT) that indexes willingness to exert effort for monetary reward. The PRT was administered to 96 adults ages 18–60 including 25 participants with a current episode of unipolar depression, 28 with bipolar disorder (current episode depressed), and 43 controls without any lifetime history of Axis I psychiatric disorders. Results Depressed participants exhibited significantly lower motivation than control participants as objectively defined by progressive ratio breakpoints. Both the unipolar and bipolar groups were lower than controls but did not differ from each other. Limitations Medication use differed across groups, and we did not have a separate control task to measure psychomotor activity; however neither medication effects or psychomotor slowing are likely to explain our findings. Conclusions Our study fills an important gap in the literature by providing evidence that diminished effort on the PRT is present across depressed patients who experience either unipolar or bipolar depression. This adds to growing evidence for shared mechanisms of reward and motivation dysfunction, and highlights the importance of improving the assessment and treatment of motivation deficits across the mood disorders spectrum.

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Building on evidence that romantic experiences are associated with depressive symptoms in adolescence, we examined their bidirectional association, as well as the role of sexual activity and parent–adolescent stress in their association. Data were collected from 71 early adolescent girls (M age 13.45 years; SD = 0.68) and their primary caregiver initially and one year later. Results indicated that adolescents who engaged in more romantic activities experienced increases in depressive symptoms over time. Second, greater depressive symptoms predicted romantic involvement and sexual activities, including intercourse, one year later. Third, dysphoric adolescents who were experiencing higher parent–adolescent stress were the most likely to engage in subsequent sexual intercourse. Implications for understanding how the association between depressive symptoms and romantic and sexual experiences develops and the course of this association are discussed.

Negative emotion differentiation (NED) refers to the ability to identify and label discrete negative emotions. Low NED has been previously linked to depression and other indices of low psychological well-being. However, this construct has rarely been explored during adolescence, a time of escalating depression risk, or examined in the context of naturalistic stressors. Further, the association between NED and depression has never been tested longitudinally. We propose a diathesis-stress model wherein low NED amplifies the association between stressful life events (SLEs) and depression. A sample of 233 community-recruited midadolescents (Mage 15.90 years, 54% female) completed diagnostic interviews and reported on mood and daily stressors 4 times per day for 7 days. SLEs were assessed using a semistructured interview with diagnosis-blind team coding based on the contextual threat method. Follow-up interviews were conducted 1.5 years after baseline. Low NED was correlated with depression but did not predict prospective changes in depression as a main effect. Confirming predictions and supporting a diathesis-stress model, low NED predicted (a) within-subjects associations between daily hassles and momentary depressed mood, (b) between-subjects associations between SLE severity and depression, and (c) prospective associations between SLE severity and increases in depression at follow-up. Results were specific to negative (vs. positive) emotion differentiation. Results suggest that low NED is primarily depressogenic in the context of high stress exposure.

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