Personality antecedents of depressive tendencies in 18-year-olds: a prospective study

Antecedents of depressive tendencies at age 18 were longitudinally evaluated using data from nursery school through high school. Depression was measured by CES-D scores from which the contribution of self-reported anxiety was partialed. As early as age 7, boys who subsequently acknowledged dysthymia were aggressive, self-aggrandizing, and undercontrolled whereas girls with later depressive tendencies were intropunitive, oversocialized, and overcontrolling. Similar gender differences were observed in pre- and early adolescence. At age 14, dysthymic boys were more likely to use both marijuana and harder drugs whereas dysthymic girls showed no tendency to use marijuana but did show a marked tendency to experiment with hard drugs. These girls also displayed low self-esteem. Preschool IQ correlated positively with dysthymia in girls and negatively in boys. The psychodynamics of gender differences in depressive affect were discussed.