William M. Reynolds

Handbook of depression in children and adolescents

Introduction and General Issues: The Nature and Study of Depression in Children and Adolescents W.M. Reynolds, H.F. Johnston. Phenomenology and Epidemiology of Mood Disorders in Children and Adolescents E.O. Poznanski, H.B. Mokros. Theories and Models of Depression: Dynamic and Interpersonal Theories of Depression J.R. Bemporad. Cognitive and Behavioral Correlates of Childhood Depression: A Developmental Perspective N.J. Kaslow, et al. Approaches to Assessment and Diagnosis: Classification and Diagnostic Criteria of Depression in Children and Adolescents D. Sherak, et al. Evalution of Depression in Children and Adolescents Using Diagnostic Clinical Interviews K. Hodges. Treatment Approaches: Psychological Treatment Approaches for Depression in Children K.D. Stark, et al. Psychological Approaches to the Treatment of Depression in Adolescents P.M. Lewinsohn, et al. Depression in Special Populations: Depression in Infants P.V. Trad. Selected Topics in the Study of Depression in Young People: Maltreatment and Childhood Depression G. Downey, et al. 15 additional articles. Index.

A comparison of the relative efficacy of self-control therapy and a behavioral problem-solving therapy for depression in children.

Twenty-nine children 9 to 12 years old who were identified as moderately to severely depressed using the Childrens Depression Inventory were randomly assigned to either a self-control, behavioral problem-solving, or waiting list condition. The self-control treatment focused on teaching children self-management skills. The behavioral problem-solving therapy consisted of education, self-monitoring of pleasant events, and group problem solving directed toward improving social behavior. Subjects were assessed pre-and posttreatment and at 8-week follow-up with multiple assessment procedures and from multiple perspectives. At posttreatment, subjects in both active treatments reported significant improvement on self-report and interview measures of depression while subjects in the waiting list condition reported minimal change. Results were maintained at follow-up. The general success of the experimental treatments was discussed and recommendations for further treatment components were provided.

Exposure to violence in young inner-city adolescents: relationships with suicidal ideation, depression, and PTSD symptomatology.

This study examined the relationship of exposure to violence to suicidal ideation, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology in 94 young adolescents from an inner-city school. Participants completed self-report measures of the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale, the Suicidal Ideation Questionnaire—Junior, Adolescent Psychopathology Scale—Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Subscale, and the Exposure to Violence Questionnaire. Using a hierarchical multiple regression design, exposure to violence demonstrated a unique relationship with PTSD symptomatology. Specifically, the relationship between violence exposure and PTSD symptomatology remained significant after controlling for depression and suicidal ideation severity. Controlling for PTSD symptomatology resulted in nonsignificant relationships between violence exposure and depression and suicidal ideation in adolescents. Additional analyses suggest that PTSD functions as a mediating variable between exposure to violence and depression and suicidal ideation. The implication of these results and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Reliability and validity of the Hamilton Depression Inventory: A paper-and-pencil version of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale Clinical Interview.

A self-report, paper-and-pencil version of the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS ; M. Hamilton, 1960) was developed. This measure, the Hamilton Depression Inventory (HDI ; W. M. Reynolds & K. A. Kobak, 1995) consists of a 23-item full form, a 17-item form, and a 9-item short form. The 17-item HDI form corresponds in content and scoring to the standard 17-item HDRS. With a sample of psychiatric outpatients with major depression (n = 140 anxiety disorders (n = 99), and nonreferred community adults (n = 118), the HDI forms demonstrated high levels of reliability ( r α =.91 to.94, r tt =.95 to.96). Extensive validity evidence was presented, including content, criterion-related, construct, and clinical efficacy of the HDI cutoff score. Overall, the data support the reliability and validity of the HDI as a self-report measure of severity of depression.

Reliability and Validity of the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale with Young Adolescents.

Abstract The current investigation examined the reliability and validity of the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale (RADS; Reynolds, 1986a ) in a sample of 89 young adolescents from an inner-city school. Participants were initially assessed in their classroom with the RADS, and then individually retested with the RADS and interviewed with the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (Hamilton, 1967) . The internal consistency reliability of the RADS was .91 on the initial assessment and .93 for the retest. The test-retest reliability of the RADS was .87. The correlation between the RADS and the Hamilton interview on the retesting was .76 (p

Assessment of Depression in Children and Adolescents by Self-Report Questionnaires

Virtually all research and clinical work with depressed children and adolescents utilizes assessment procedures. Assessment is a basic process for determining the presence or absence of depression and depressive symptoms in children and adolescents. Assessment as a process encompasses both formal and informal procedures for making decisions about persons. As measures for the assessment of depression are discussed in this chapter, it should be recognized that assessment as a process does not occur in isolation. The assessment of depression in youngsters, as with other clinical domains and populations, is a complex interaction of the individual being evaluated, the assessment methods, the clinician or evaluators, and the setting events, as well as prior experiences and the reason for the assessment.

Initial Development and Validation of the Academic Self-Concept Scale:

The Academic Self-Concept Scale (ASCS) was developed as a measure of an academic facet of general self-concept in college stu dents. The initial item pool consisted of 59 items worded to conform to a 4-point Likert-type response format. On the basis of responses from 427 college students, the final form of the ASCS was con structed consisting of 40 items with an estimated internal con sistency reliability of .91. Validity was established by correlating the ASCS with grade point averages (GPAs) of students and with their scores on the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. A multiple regression analysis of the ASCS with GPA and Rosenberg scores as predictor variables resulted in a multiple correlation of .64. These and other data lend support to the reliability and validity of the ASCS as a measure of academic self-concept.

Development and validation of a computer-administered version of the Hamilton Anxiety Scale

The authors developed a computer-administered form of the Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAS; Hamilton, 1959), designed to provide a high degree of correspondence with the clinician interview version of the HAS. Both computer and clinician forms of the HAS were administered to psychiatric outpatients (n = 214) and community-based adults (n = 78). The computer-administered HAS demonstrated high internal consistency (r α =.92) and test-retest reliability (r tt =.96). A correlation of r(290) =.92, p <.001, was found between the computer and the clinician versions. The mean score difference between versions was small but significant, F(1, 290) = 21.36, p <.0011. In subjects with anxiety disorders the mean score difference between computer and clinician versions was not significant

Suicide and Suicidal Behaviors in Children and Adolescents

Suicide and suicidal behavior have been described for nearly all of recorded history (Rosen, 1971). Historically, societal and professional perspectives on suicide have gone through continual periods of acceptance, rejection, ambivalence, and philosophical debate for millennia. Even today, the view of suicide as a pathological behavior or mental health problem to be prevented has been questioned by some (e. g., Szasz, 1986). The existential debate as to the legitimacy or normality of suicide is enervated when we consider suicidal behavior in children and adolescents.

The Nature and Study of Depression in Children and Adolescents

Depression is a serious mental health problem in children and adolescents. It has been estimated that nearly 1 of every 6 youngsters admitted to psychiatric hospitals in the United States had an intake diagnosis of a depressive disorder (Silver, 1988). Depression is also one of the most frequently found psychiatric disorders among suicidal children and adolescents [Reynolds and Mazza (Chapter 24)]. Over the past two decades, the study of depression in children and adolescents has become an area of extensive research in the fields of psychiatry, psychology, and related disciplines. The range of research domains, from neuroendocrinology to cognitive deficits, suggests an enormous interest on the part of professionals in the nature, evaluation, and treatment of depression in young people. What is most impressive is that the vast majority of research on depression in children and adolescents has been conducted since the mid-1970s. This delay in our focus on depression in young people may be in part a function of the long-term psychodynamic perspectives of depression as nonexistent in children or normative in adolescents. In particular, the notion or myth of adolescent turmoil overshadowed for many professionals the validity of depression as a form of psychopathology in this age group (Offer & Schonert-Reichl, 1992).