Associations Between Positive Mental Wellbeing and Depressive Symptoms in Australian Adolescents

Abstract

This study examined the association and directionality of effect between mental wellbeing and depressive symptoms in Australian adolescents. Data were collected on two occasions 21 months apart. At Time 1, 1,762 10- to 14-year-old adolescents from a range of socio-economic status areas participated. At Time 2 (T2), 1,575 participated again. On both occasions, the Short Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing Scale (SWEMWBS) and the Children's Depression Inventory 2 (CDI 2) were administered via online survey. Cross-lagged, longitudinal path analyses demonstrated a negative association between earlier symptoms of depression and later positive mental wellbeing, and that the reverse was also true, though weaker. The model accounted for 20% of the variance in males’ T2 CDI 2 depressive symptom scores (26% for females) and 21% of the variance in males’ T2 SWEMWBS mental wellbeing scores (23% for females). Depressive symptomatology and mental wellbeing were highly correlated, but symptoms of depression were more strongly associated with later mental wellbeing than vice versa. This has implications for educational psychologists, teachers, health professionals, and policy makers seeking to reduce depressive symptoms or promote mental wellbeing. Focusing solely on the promotion of mental wellbeing, without intervening to reduce symptoms of depression, may limit the potential outcomes that might be achieved.

Symptom centrality and infrequency of endorsement identify adolescent depression symptoms more strongly associated with life satisfaction

“…This pattern of findings appears to extend to adolescents, as anhedonia is associated with suicidal ideation in adolescents while irritability is not (Gabbay et al, 2015). Ignoring the intrinsic heterogeneity of depression may mask important associations between individual depression symptoms and non-symptom outcomes in adolescents, such as life satisfaction (Fried, 2015;Zadow et al, 2017).…”

Reciprocal relationship between multicultural adolescents’ depression and life satisfaction: a random intercept cross-lagged panel model for 3-wave panel data

“…Compared to other native Korean adolescents, MA living in Korea experience psychological problems due to socioeconomic factors (nationality and education level of their parents), family factors (parenting, relationship quality), social factors (discrimination), cultural factors (acculturative stress and bicultural acceptance) (Lee et al, 2019). Most existing studies conducted on MA explain depression and life satisfaction as one point and moving in one direction (Cho & Park, 2020;Zadow et al, 2017). However, according to the "Health 2020" framework of the WHO, life satisfaction is defined as an important variable that can identify risk signs of depression (Gigantesco et al, 2019), and because it is also affected by depression (Sacco & Beck, 1995;Cummins, 2000), the need for mutual influence between life satisfaction and depression is emphasized.…”

“…During the growth and developmental process of adolescents, maladaptation leads to internalized problem behaviors such as depression (Achenbach & Edelbrock, 1978). According to Beck's cognitive theory, depression causes cognitive distortion such as a negative view of reality (Sacco & Beck, 1995), which leads to lower subjective well-being and also reinforces negative emotions, leading to depression again (Moksnes et al, 2016;Zadow et al, 2017). In the other way around, the homeostasis theory of subjective well-being proposes that experiencing unfavorable life conditions lowers the level of life satisfaction, leading to depression (Cummins, 2000).…”

Does Mental Well-Being Protect against Self-Harm Thoughts and Behaviors during Adolescence? A Six-Month Prospective Investigation

“…It is the combination of these aspects that contribute to a young person being mentally healthy (i.e., feeling good and functioning well) [26,27]. Greater mental well-being appears to protect against a range of negative health, social and psychological outcomes [27][28][29]. Due to growing awareness of its public health impact the promotion of mental well-being during adolescence is becoming an international priority [30,31].…”

“…It could therefore be hypothesized that mental well-being may fit as a pre-existing background protective factor within the pre-motivational phase. Given that depression (a disorder characterized by depressed mood and a loss of interest and/or pleasure) is associated with poorer mental well-being and increased risk of self-harm thoughts and behaviors [29], it is important to account for the influence of young people's experiences of depressive symptoms when examining the role of mental well-being in self-harmful pathways.…”