Self-criticism and dependency in adolescents with depression: associations with clinical features and psychological functioning

Overview

This study examined associations between the personality dimensions of self-criticism and dependency and clinical features and psychological functioning in a large clinical sample of 465 adolescents with depression. While these personality dimensions have been established as vulnerability factors for depression in adults, evidence in clinical adolescent populations remains limited. The investigation assessed both intrapersonal functioning indices (depression, anxiety, antisocial behavior, obsessive-compulsive features, self-harm, suicidality) and interpersonal functioning domains (friendship quality, family functioning, parenting).

Methods and approach

The study employed a cross-sectional design with 465 clinically depressed adolescents. Self-criticism and dependency were examined as predictor variables in relation to multiple outcome measures spanning clinical symptoms and psychosocial functioning. Associations were analyzed using correlation and multiple regression approaches to quantify the relationships between personality dimensions and both intrapersonal and interpersonal indices of functioning.

Results

Self-criticism demonstrated more consistent associations with maladaptive functioning indices relative to dependency. Gender-specific patterns emerged, with self-criticism in girls associated with increased anxiety, obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and suicidal ideation, while dependency in boys showed similar associations with these outcomes. These patterns suggest differential vulnerability pathways for personality dimensions across gender in clinically depressed adolescents.

Implications

The findings provide the first evidence in a large clinically depressed adolescent sample that self-criticism and dependency function as meaningful personality correlates of clinical features and psychological functioning. Self-criticism appears to maintain its status as a primary vulnerability factor across developmental stages, consistent with adult literature. The gender incongruence effects warrant further investigation regarding potential mechanisms underlying differential expression and clinical consequences of these personality dimensions in adolescent males and females.