Depression is one of the most common health problems among the student population and as such, it is crucial to understand and identify the factors that contribute to its onset and persistence. The...Show moreDepression is one of the most common health problems among the student population and as such, it is crucial to understand and identify the factors that contribute to its onset and persistence. The network approach to psychopathology conceptualizes mental health disorders as complex systems of interrelated factors. This approach facilitates the identification of key risk factors associated with the onset and maintenance of depression. The aim of the current study was to examine the relationship between multiple risk factors for depression and their interrelations using a network approach. A sample of 444 Dutch higher education students were assessed with multiple scales measuring several risk factors previously associated with depression. The associations between these risk factors and depression were then estimated in a regularized Gaussian Graphical Model (GGM). A total of eleven nodes were included in the network, and centrality measures and the stability and accuracy of the network were studied. Specific nodes that occupied critical positions in the network were identified, with current stress, depression, repetitive negative thinking and pessimism being the most central nodes. Depression showed the highest positive associations with current stress and sleep problems. These explorative findings offer guidance on the relative importance of certain risk factors, such as current stress, repetitive negative thinking, and pessimism over other risk factors in the network. These results could possibly have important implications for the future study and prevention of depression in higher education students. Longitudinal studies are needed to expand on these preliminary findings.Show less
The literature on risk and protective factors for depression focuses on biological, demographic, social-environmental, and psychological factors. Estimating a network model, this thesis project...Show moreThe literature on risk and protective factors for depression focuses on biological, demographic, social-environmental, and psychological factors. Estimating a network model, this thesis project explores how dynamic psychological risk and protective factors for depression interact and determines which factors are more central to a network of these factors (Research Question 1). It also tests if dynamic risk and protective coping factors relate to current depressive symptoms, as prior studies suggest (Research Question 2). Cross-sectional data from 453 students at a Dutch higher education participating in the WARN-D research project were analyzed. Overall, protective factors clustered together, as risk factors did. The strongest positive associations emerged between Seeking Distraction and Ignoring and between Locus of Control and Optimism. The strongest negative relations merged between Seeking Social Support and Ignoring, Resilience and Intolerance of Uncertainty, and Catastrophizing. Self-efficacy, Resilience, and Self-esteem were the most central features of the network. The results did not support the hypothesis that all the included risk and protective factors are related to current depressive symptoms. Only some were, with the strongest positive associations being between current depressive symptoms and Persistent Thinking and Optimism. Despite the limitations of the present work, these findings highlight the importance of further research on risk and protective factors for depression.Show less
