Family Interactions in Mood-Disordered Youth

Family interactions appear to play an important role in the timing, intensity, and persistence of depressive disorders in adults. This article reviews the literature on the role of family interactions in depression in children and adolescents. Children’s reports of depressed affect have been associated with a variety of dysfunctional family attributes including maternal hostility, lack of cohesiveness, poor communication, and increased conflict. It is unclear, however, whether these patterns are specific to families of depressed youth or characterize the families of children with varied psychiatric psychosocial difficulties.