Contingency-competence-control-related beliefs and symptoms of anxiety and depression in a young adolescent sample

The present study examined the connection between contingency-competence-control-related beliefs, on the one hand, and anxiety and depression, on the other hand, in a large sample of young adolescents aged 10 to 14 years (N = 214). Participants completed measures of perceived contingency, competence, and control, as well as a questionnaire assessing symptoms of common anxiety disorders and major depressive disorder. Results showed that contingency-competence-control-related beliefs were intercorrelated and that these beliefs, in turn, were significantly associated with symptoms of anxiety and depression. Structural equation modeling provided support for a model in which perceived contingency and perceived competence predicted perceived control and in which perceived competence (anxiety and depression) and perceived control (depression only), in turn, predicted symptoms of psychopathology. A prospective test of this model indicated that none of the contingency-competence-control-related beliefs was able to predict symptoms of anxiety and depression at 4-weeks follow-up. However, data also demonstrated that perceived competence significantly contributed to the subjective experience of anxiety and depression on both occasions.