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In order to offer early and accessible treatment for adolescents with depression, brief and effective treatments in adolescents' everyday surroundings are needed. This randomized controlled trial studied the preliminary effectiveness, feasibility, and acceptability of interpersonal counseling (IPC) and brief psychosocial support (BPS) in school health and welfare services. The study was conducted in the 28 lower secondary schools of a large city in Southern Finland, randomized to provide either IPC or BPS. Help-seeking 12-16-year-old adolescents with mild-to-moderate depression, with and without comorbid anxiety, were included in the study. Fifty-five adolescents received either 6 weekly sessions of IPC or BPS and two follow-up sessions. Outcome measures included self- and clinician-rated measures of depression, global functioning, and psychological distress/well-being. To assess feasibility and acceptability of the treatments, adolescents' and counselors' treatment compliance and satisfaction with treatment were assessed. Both treatments were effective in reducing depressive disorders and improving adolescents' overall functioning and well-being. At post-treatment, in both groups, over 50% of adolescents achieved recovery based on self-report and over 70% based on observer report. Effect sizes for change were medium or large in both groups at post-treatment and increased at 6-month follow-up. A trend indicating greater baseline symptom severity among adolescents treated in the IPC-providing schools was observed. Adolescents and counselors in both groups were satisfied with the treatment, and 89% of the adolescents completed the treatments and follow-ups. This trial suggests that both IPC and BPS are feasible, acceptable, and effective treatments for mild-to-moderate depression in the school setting. In addition, IPC seems effective even if comorbid anxiety exists. Our study shows that brief, structured interventions, such as IPC and BPS, are beneficial in treating mild-to-moderate depression in school settings and can be administered by professionals working at school.

Background: There are no studies of the distinct trajectories of children's psychological distress over the first year after a destructive natural disaster and the determinants of these trajectories. Objective: We examined these issues using an existing dataset of children exposed to Hurricane Andrew, one of the most devastating natural disasters in US history. Methods: At 3-months postdisaster, 568 children (55% girls; grades 3-5) residing in areas most directly affected by the hurricane completed measures of hurricane exposure and stressors, social support, coping, and general anxiety. Children also reported major life events occurring since the hurricane (at 7-months) and posttraumatic stress (PTS) symptoms at 3-, 7-, and 10-months postdisaster. Results: Latent growth mixture modeling identified three trajectories of PTS reactions: resilient (37%), recovering (43%), and chronic distress (20%). Predictors of the trajectories were examined. Odds ratios indicated that, compared to the resilient trajectory, girls were more likely to be in the recovering and chronically distressed trajectories, as were children reporting higher anxiety and greater use of coping strategies that reflected poor emotion regulation. Compared to the recovering trajectory, children in the chronically distressed trajectory had greater odds of reporting high anxiety, less social support, more intervening life events, and greater use of poor emotion regulation strategies. Conclusions: Hurricane exposure may be less effective in identifying children who develop chronic postdisaster distress than other child (anxiety, coping) and contextual variables (social support, life events). Effective screening after disasters is critical for identifying youth most in need of limited clinical resources.

This study used a 2-month prospective research design to examine the bi-directional interplay between peer victimization and social anxiety among adolescents. Participants included 228 adolescents (58% female) in grades 10-12. Three types of peer victimization were examined: "overt" (physical aggression or verbal threats), "relational" (malicious manipulation of a relationship, such as by friendship withdrawal), and "reputational" (damaging another's peer relationships, such as through rumor spreading). Adolescents' self-reported feelings of social anxiety and peer victimization experiences were assessed at two time points, in November and January of the same school year. Peer victimization was strongly related to adolescents' social anxiety, and relational victimization explained additional unique variance. Moreover, peer victimization was both a predictor and consequence of social anxiety over time, with the most robust results found for relational victimization. Limited support was obtained for gender as a moderating variable. Findings highlight the deleterious effects of peer victimization, especially relational victimization, and suggest avenues for future research and clinical intervention for adolescents experiencing such victimization.

This study evaluated the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents (SAS-A) in a sample of 296 adolescents (49% boys) in Grades 7, 8, 9, 10, and 12 with a mean age of 15.52 years. Confirmatory factor analysis replicated the three-factor structure of the SAS-A in the Chinese sample: Fear of Negative Evaluation (FNE), Social Avoidance and Distress in New Situations (SAD-New), and Social Avoidance and Distress-General (SAD-General). Internal consistency and test-retest reliability were appropriate. The results also revealed a clear and predictable pattern of relationships between the SAS-A and the Questionnaire about Interpersonal Difficulties for Adolescents and the International Personality Item Pool. Chinese boys reported greater SAD-General than Chinese girls, and this difference increased with grade. The SAS-A scores were compared to previously collected data from the USA and Spain, revealing that Chinese adolescents scored significantly higher in social anxiety than American and Spanish adolescents.

This study examined adolescents' interpersonal functioning, including the qualities of their closest friendships and romantic relationships, as predictors of dating/heterosocial anxiety. An ethnically diverse sample of 781 adolescents (57% girls; ages 15-19 years) completed measures that assessed the number and type of close friends, the presence of a romantic relationship, the qualities of their best same-sex friendship and their romantic relationship (using the Network of Relationships Inventory-Revised), and levels of dating or heterosocial anxiety (using the Dating Anxiety Scale for Adolescents). Most adolescents were romantically involved, and girls were more likely to have a romantic partner than boys. Adolescents with fewer other-sex friends and those with less positive and more negative interactions with their best friends reported high levels of dating anxiety. In addition, adolescents who reported never having a romantic relationship, who did not have a current romantic partner, and who had less positive and more negative interactions with their romantic partners reported higher levels of dating anxiety. Variations were noted for different aspects of dating anxiety. The findings indicate that multiple aspects of adolescents' social relations may be independently and uniquely related to feelings of distress in dating or heterosocial situations. Adolescents' social relationships have the potential to support or interfere with the development of successful romantic relationships. (Contains 4 tables and 3 footnotes.)

This study examined multiple levels of adolescents' interpersonal functioning, including general peer relations (peer crowd affiliations, peer victimization), and qualities of best friendships and romantic relationships as predictors of symptoms of depression and social anxiety. An ethnically diverse sample of 421 adolescents (57% girls; 14 to 19 years) completed measures of peer crowd affiliation, peer victimization, and qualities of best friendships and romantic relationships. Peer crowd affiliations (high and low status), positive qualities in best friendships, and the presence of a dating relationship protected adolescents against feelings of social anxiety, whereas relational victimization and negative interactions in best friendships predicted high social anxiety. In contrast, affiliation with a high-status peer crowd afforded some protection against depressive affect; however, relational victimization and negative qualities of best friendships and romantic relationships predicted depressive symptoms. Some moderating effects for ethnicity were observed. Findings indicate that multiple aspects of adolescents' social relations uniquely contribute to feelings of internal distress. Implications for research and preventive interventions are discussed.

Given the importance of romantic and dating relationships during adolescence, the purpose of the study was to develop and evaluate the psychometric properties of the Dating Anxiety Scale for Adolescents (DAS-A). Participants were 757 high school students (56% girls, ages 15 to 18 years). Adolescents completed the DAS-A, the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents (SAS-A), a Dating Questionnaire, and the Revised Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II). Factor analysis of the DAS-A yielded a 3-factor solution with acceptable internal consistencies: fear of negative evaluation in dating situations (FNE-Dating); social distress when interacting with real or potential dating partners (SD-Date); and social distress when in a group of mixed-sex peers (SD-Group). Confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the 3-factor solution. Results indicated that younger adolescents reported more dating anxiety than older adolescents, and boys reported more SD-Group than girls. Dating anxiety was associated with peer-related anxiety and depressive symptoms and was a significant predictor of adolescents' current and usual dating status, even when controlling for adolescents' peer-related social anxiety. The findings provide support for the reliability and validity of the DAS-A. Clinical and research implications are discussed.

Three months after Hurricane Andrew, 89 children in grades four to six who lived in two-parent families and had experienced the hurricane were tested. Children's symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder were related to their perceptions of parental conflict; this relationship was stronger for Hispanic children than for other ethnic groups. Contains 41 references. (SV)