Related Experiment Video
Updated: Oct 11, 2025

Author Spotlight: Understanding Adolescent Social Adversity Effects on Neurodevelopment in Mice
Published on: March 15, 2024
The Influence of Pubertal Development on Adolescent Depression: The Mediating Effects of Negative Physical Self and
Lijiao Jiang1,2, Dandan Yang3, Yitong Li4
1The Affective Cognition and Regulation Laboratory, Institute of Brain and Psychological Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, China.
Abstract:
The current study examined the influence of pubertal development stage on depression and its psychosocial mechanisms in a non-clinical population of 502 adolescents (244 boys and 258 girls) in China, graded 5 to 8. Results indicated that (1) pubertal development was positively correlated with depression, negative physical self and interpersonal stress. (2) There is a significant gender by pubertal development interaction on the measure of academic self-concept, which is accounted for by decreased academic self in boys but not in girls as a function of pubertal development. (3) Mediation analyses show that increased depression in late compared to pre- puberty is partly mediated by the enhancement of negative physical self and interpersonal stress. These findings suggest that the late stage of puberty is coupled by a higher risk of depression in adolescents partly through increased negative physical self and interpersonal stress.
Related Concept Videos
Sources of Self-Esteem I: Family Experience
Self-Evaluation: Self-Enhancement and Self-Verification
Stress and Mental Health
Individuals with depression often experience challenges in both their personal and professional...
Influence of Parents and Peers on Identity
Parental Influence on Identity Development
Parents serve as primary guides and managers in an adolescent's life, offering support instrumental in decision-making and personal growth....
Erikson's Theory on Socioemotional Development during Adolescence
Nature and Nurture

