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TitleThe role of neuroticism in depressive and anxious symptoms among adolescents from urban and rural China
NameZilber, Irene (author), Abela, John (chair), Wilson, G. (internal member), McCarthy, Danielle (internal member), Rutgers University, Graduate School - New Brunswick,
Degree Date2009-10
Date Created2009
SubjectPsychology,
Neuroses,
Depression in adolescence--China,
Adolescent psychopathology--China,
Anxiety in adolescence--China
DescriptionLifetime prevalence rates of suicide and depression are on the rise in mainland China, especially among the youth. The current study examined whether the personality construct of neuroticism confers vulnerability to depressive symptoms in Chinese adolescents. More specifically, this study examined: (1) whether neuroticism predicted the prospective changes in depressive symptoms following the occurrence of negative life events, (2) the specificity of this prediction to depressive symptoms, and (3) the mediation and moderation models of sex differences in depressive symptoms. Adolescents ages 14-19 from Changsha (N=536) and Liuyang (N=570) participated in this multi-wave longitudinal study. Depressive symptoms, anxious symptoms, and neuroticism levels were assessed initially, and depressive symptoms, anxious symptoms, and negative life events were assessed monthly for the next six months. Results support the hypothesis that neuroticism confers vulnerability to depressive symptoms, specificity for depressive symptoms was not found, and no reliable sex differences were found among depressive symptoms, thus precluding the possibility of testing mediation and moderation models. In addition, neuroticism conferred vulnerability to anxious symptoms in the low neuroticism group. All findings were replicated across both sites.
NoteM.S.
NoteIncludes bibliographical references (p. 26-29)
Noteby Irene Zilber
Genretheses
Persistent URLhttp://hdl.rutgers.edu/1782.2/rucore10001600001.ETD.000051937
Languageeng
CollectionGraduate School - New Brunswick Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Organization NameRutgers, The State University of New Jersey
RightsThe author owns the copyright to this work