Contagious depression: existence, specificity to depressed symptoms, and the role of reassurance seeking

This study prospectively examined the phenomenon of contagious depression in 96 pairs of college roommates during 2 assessment sessions separated by 3 weeks. Depression, anxiety, negative and positive affect, negative life stress, and reassurance seeking were assessed. Consistent with prediction, roommates of depressed target students became more depressed themselves over the course of the 3-week study. The effect persisted when baseline levels of roommate depression and roommate negative life events were controlled. Furthermore, these findings were specific to depressed symptoms. Finally, as predicted, reassurance seeking served as a vulnerability factor for the contagion effect: High-but not low-reassurance-seeking roommates of depressed target students became more depressed themselves. However, the moderating effects of reassurance seeking were not specific to depressed symptoms.