M.Ed. / Depression of adolescents is often misunderstood or misjudged. Depression is an universal disorder worldwide and there are more than 300 million people who are suffering from it (Star, 11 April 1999). Approximately nine percent of all children experience symptoms of depression. It increases from twenty two to forty percent among adolescents (Offord, 1987:10). On any given point of time there are as much as one out of every thirty three children and as many as one out of every eight adolescents suffering from clinical depression (Dubuque, 1998:64). Unfortunately depression has become part of our society and we shall have to learn how to handle it in order to render assistance to people who are suffering from this disorder. It is a shocking fact that more and more adolescents are trying to commit suicide. This is one of the findings that came to light in September 1999 during a Symposium of the South African Council for Child and Family Care. The following question arises: what is the experience of adolescent girls who are in a place of caring and who are suffering from depression and which guidelines could be provided to psychological educationists to accompany girls and to promote their mental health?A qualitative, describing and conceptual design was used to collect data and describe the adolescent girl in a place of caring and who is suffering from depression. The research took place in two phases. In Phase One in depth phenomenological interviews were conducted. In Phase Two logical inference was used to generate guidelines to psychological educationists to provide accompaniment to adolescent girls who are in places of care and who are suffering from depression.From the research it appeared that the following themes continuously came to the front amongst girls who are in places of care and who are suffering from depression: • need of acceptance and fear of loneliness; • a lack of hope and purpose in life; and • psychological coping mechanisms as a way of handling situations. The following sub-themes of adolescent girls who are in places of care and who are suffering from depression are identified: • a negative self concept; • poor self acceptance; • poor interpersonal relationships; • fear which is related to the girls' own helplessness and inability to escape from situations; and • defence mechanisms: rationalisation to make depression more acceptable; and suppression to suppress emotions in this way. From the research certain needs were identified by adolescent girls who are in places of care and who are suffering from depression: • the need of acceptance and the need of the addressing the fear of loneliness; • the addressing of feelings of lack of hope and purpose in life; and • the need of healthy coping mechanisms as a way in which situations could be handled. Guidelines to psychological educationists for the accompaniment of adolescent girls who are in places of care and who are suffering from depression are set out as follows: • guidelines to address the need of acceptance and the fear for loneliness; • guidelines to address the lack of hope and purpose in life; and • guidelines to develop healthy coping mechanisms.

The present study aimed to investigate the role of self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism in conjunction with stressful life experiences in suicidal ideation, potential, and prior attempts among depressed adolescents. Self-oriented perfectionism involves striving to meet one's own unrealistically high standards and evaluating one's performance stringently. Socially prescribed perfectionism involves the perception that significant others have very high expectations for oneself, which the perfectionist strives to meet. This study examined correlations between these perfectionism dimensions and suicidal ideation, potential or risk, and prior attempts in addition to investigating whether either perfectionism dimension accounted for additional variance in suicide outcomes beyond the established risk factors depression and hopelessness. Also examined was a moderational model whereby dimensions of perfectionism were hypothesized to interact with stress to predict suicide outcomes. A sample of 55 adolescents (41 females, 14 males) who met the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders - Fourth Edition (DSM-IV; APA, 1994) criteria for Major Depression (65.5%), Dysthymia (16.4%), or Depressive Disorder NOS (18.2%) completed self-report measures of perfectionism, daily hassles, depression, hopelessness, suicidal ideation, suicide potential, and prior suicidal attempts. Additionally, adolescents and one of their parents completed a diagnostic interview and a stress interview measuring major stressful experiences. Results revealed that self-oriented perfectionism was not correlated with any aspect of suicide; however, socially prescribed perfectionism was associated with suicide potential. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that self-oriented perfectionism did not account for unique variance in suicide outcomes, whereas, socially prescribed perfectionism predicted additional variance in suicide potential once depression and hopelessness were controlled. Regarding the moderational model, both self-oriented and socially prescribed perfectionism were found to interact with aspects of stress to predict suicidality. More specifically, self-oriented perfectionism interacted with daily hassles to predict suicide potential/risk. Socially prescribed perfectionism interacted with subjective and objective ratings of major stressful experiences and with daily hassles to predict suicide potential/risk. Neither perfectionism dimension interacted with stress to predict suicidal ideation or prior suicide attempts. Taken together, these findings suggest that among depressed adolescents, socially prescribed perfectionism is correlated with suicide risk and predicts unique variance in this suicide outcome beyond other established risk factors. Additionally, both selforiented and socially prescribed perfectionism act as vulnerability factors that are predictive of suicide potential when adolescents experience elevated levels of stress. As these relationships were apparent even after controlling for the contributions of depression and hopelessness to suicide, the results of this study highlight the importance of considering perfectionistic tendencies when evaluating suicide risk among youth. / Arts, Faculty of / Psychology, Department of / Graduate

University of Macau / Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities / Department of Psychology

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Washington, 1999. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 78-87).

by Wong Chi Kin, Max. / Includes questionaire in Chinese. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 80-89). / ABSTRACT --- p.ii / ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS --- p.iii / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.iv / LIST OF TABLES --- p.vi / LIST OF FIGURES --- p.vii / LIST OF APPENDICES --- p.ix / Chapter CHAPTER I - --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / The concept of stress --- p.1 / Daily hassles and Depression --- p.3 / Beck's cognitive theory --- p.7 / Alternative Etiologies model --- p.13 / Symptom model --- p.14 / Interactional Alternative Etiologies model and Symptom models --- p.17 / Chinese Studies --- p.19 / Purpose of the present study --- p.20 / Improvement over past studies --- p.20 / Chapter CHAPTER II - --- METHOD --- p.22 / Subjects --- p.22 / Instruments --- p.22 / Procedure --- p.24 / Chapter CHAPTER III - --- RESULTS --- p.26 / Attrition analysis --- p.26 / Analysis of demographic and time effects --- p.26 / Reliabilities of measures --- p.32 / Interrelations of measured variables --- p.32 / Multiple regression analysis --- p.34 / Two-wave longitudinal path analysis --- p.38 / Chapter CHAPTER IV - --- DISCUSSION --- p.68 / Time effect --- p.68 / Stability of measured variables --- p.68 / Beck's cognitive theory of depression --- p.69 / Alternative etiological model --- p.71 / Revised symptom model --- p.72 / Interaction between daily hassles and depression --- p.75 / Limitations --- p.76 / Research implication --- p.77 / Clinical implication --- p.78 / Conclusion --- p.79 / REFERENCES --- p.80 / APPENDICES --- p.89

by Cheung Yiu Kwong. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1995. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 59-68). / Abstract --- p.ii / Acknowledgments --- p.iv / Table of contents --- p.v / List of tables --- p.vi / List of appendix --- p.vii / Chapter Chapter 1 - --- Introduction --- p.1 / Chapter Chapter 2 - --- Method --- p.18 / Chapter Chapter 3 - --- Results --- p.24 / Chapter Chapter 4 - --- Discussion --- p.44 / References --- p.59 / Appendix --- p.69

by So Yuk Chi, Cheryl. / Includes questionaire in Chinese. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1994. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 53-67). / Chapter I. --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / Depression in Children and Adolescents --- p.3 / Family Characteristics and Adolescent Depressive Symptomatology --- p.5 / Self-concept and Adolescent Depressive Symptomatology --- p.7 / Relationship between Antisocial Behavior and Depressive Symptoms during Childhood and Adolescence --- p.9 / Purpose of the Study --- p.16 / Chapter II. --- METHODS --- p.19 / Participants --- p.19 / Measures --- p.19 / Procedure --- p.25 / Data Analyses --- p.26 / Chapter III. --- RESULTS --- p.28 / Preliminary Analyses --- p.28 / Primary Research Analyses --- p.34 / Chapter IV. --- DISCUSSION --- p.43 / Alternatives Explanations for the Relationship between Antisocial Behavior and Depressive Symptoms --- p.43 / Self-Concept and Antisocial Behavior --- p.47 / Study Limitation --- p.49 / Conclusion --- p.51 / REFERENCES --- p.53 / APPENDIX --- p.68

by Chen Siu-ling Eve. / Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 79-90). / Text in English; abstracts in English and Chinese. / by Chen Siu-ling Eve. / ABSTRACT --- p.i / ACKNOWLEDGEMENT --- p.v / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.vii / LIST OF FIGURES --- p.ix / Chapter CHAPTER 1 --- INTRODUCTION / Chapter 1.1 --- Gender Research in Hong Kong --- p.1 / Chapter 1.2 --- "Gender Role Orientation, Adjustment and Psychological Well-being" --- p.2 / Chapter 1.3 --- Research Objectives and Significance --- p.4 / Chapter CHAPTER 2 --- LITERATURE REVIEW --- p.6 / Chapter 2.1 --- Definitions and Terminology / Chapter 2.1.1 --- Defining Sex and Gender --- p.9 / Chapter 2.1.2 --- Defining Gender Role Orientation --- p.12 / Chapter 2.1.3 --- Defining Gender Type --- p.14 / Chapter 2.1.4 --- Defining Gender Stereotypes --- p.15 / Chapter 2.1.5 --- Defining Depressive Symptoms and School Misbehaviors --- p.17 / Chapter 2.2 --- Conceptualization / Chapter 2.2.1 --- Adolescent Development and Psychological Adjustment --- p.19 / Chapter 2.2.2 --- Gender Type and Adjustment --- p.20 / Chapter 2.2.3 --- Gender Stereotypes and Adjustment --- p.23 / Chapter 2.2.4 --- Gender Typing and Adjustment --- p.24 / Chapter 2.2.5 --- Gender Typing and Emotion Expression Socialization --- p.25 / Chapter 2.2.6 --- Gender Role and Adjustment --- p.26 / Chapter 2.2.7 --- Chinese Culture and Adjustment --- p.31 / Chapter 2.3 --- Gender Role Orientation Differences in Psychological Well-being --- p.33 / Chapter 2.4 --- "Masculinity, Femininity and Psychological Well-being" --- p.38 / Chapter 2.5 --- Research Questions --- p.40 / Chapter CHAPTER 3 --- RESEARCH METHOD --- p.42 / Chapter 3.1 --- Subjects --- p.43 / Chapter 3.2 --- Procedures --- p.44 / Chapter 3.3 --- Instruments / Chapter 3.3.1 --- Gender Role Orientation --- p.44 / Chapter 3.3.2 --- Depressive Symptoms --- p.45 / Chapter 3.3.3 --- School Misbehaviors --- p.47 / Chapter CHAPTER 4 --- RESULTS --- p.48 / Chapter 4.1 --- Analyses of the Categorical Variables / Chapter 4.1.1 --- Gender Differences in Depressive Symptoms and Misbehaviors --- p.53 / Chapter 4.1.2 --- Gender Role Orientation Differences in Depressive Symptoms and Misbehaviors --- p.54 / Chapter 4.1.3 --- Gender Type Differences in Depressive Symptoms and Misbehaviors --- p.55 / Chapter 4.2 --- Analyses of the Continuous Variables / Chapter 4.2.1 --- "Relations among Masculinity, Femininity, Depressive Symptoms and Misbehaviors" --- p.51 / Chapter CHAPTER FIVE --- DISCUSSION --- p.64 / Chapter 5.1 --- Answers to the Research Questions / Chapter 5.1.1 --- Which Gender Role Orientation Adjusts Better Generally? --- p.65 / Chapter 5.1.2 --- Which Gender Type Adjusts Better Specifically? --- p.66 / Chapter 5.1.3 --- Which Adjustment Theory is Best Applied to Adolescentsin the Chinese Society of Hong Kong? --- p.66 / Chapter 5.1.4 --- Do Depressive Symptoms and School Misbehaviors Predict Each Other? --- p.69 / Chapter 5.1.5 --- Does Masculinity or Femininity Act as a Predictor of Adjustment? --- p.69 / Chapter 5.2 --- Educational Implications of Research Findings / Chapter 5.2.1 --- Gender Education Programmes --- p.71 / Chapter 5.2.2 --- Single Sex Schooling --- p.73 / Chapter 5.3 --- Contributions --- p.75 / Chapter 5.4 --- Limitations of the Study --- p.76 / Chapter 5.5 --- Directions for Future Research --- p.77 / REFERENCES --- p.79 / APPENDIX --- p.91

Background and objectives. Spurred by the longstanding interest in the intimate relationship between anxiety and depression, different conceptual models of negative affectivity have been proposed to account for their common and unique features. The two-factor model (Tellegen, 1985; Watson, Clark & Tellegen, 1988) proposes that Negative Affect (NA) represents a nonspecific factor common to both depression and anxiety, whereas low Positive Affect (PA) is a specific factor to depressed mood. The tripartite model (Clark & Watson, 1991b) divides symptoms into three groups: Negative Affect (general distress) symptoms that are largely non-specific; low Positive Affect (anhedonia) symptoms that are specific to depression; and Physiological Hyperarousal (PH) symptoms that are unique to anxiety. The structural model of negative affectivity (Zinbarg et al., 1994; Zinbarg & Barlow, 1996; Brown et al., 1998) postulates NA and PA as higher order factors under which PH, DSM-IV anxiety and depression are subsumed as lower order factors in a hierarchical arrangement. For the cognitive approach, Beck's cognitive content-specificity hypothesis (Beck, 1976) emphasizes the important role of specific cognitions in differentiating anxiety and depression. The objectives of the present study were: (1) To examine the relationship between anxiety and depression in an adolescent sample of Hong Kong; (2) To examine the phenotypic structure of anxiety and depression in the Hong Kong adolescent sample; and (3) To assess the validity and applicability of the western negative affectivity models and cognitive model for differentiating anxiety and depression in the Hong Kong adolescent sample. / Conclusions. Overall, the present study provides good support for the affective models of negative affectivity and the cognitive model developed in the west which constitutes a good basis for elucidating the relationship between anxiety and depression in the Chinese adolescents of Hong Kong. Although cross-cultural differences in anxiety and depressive symptoms are not directly addressed in this study, the results tend to suggest that Chinese adolescents do not uniformly over or under-report depressive or anxiety symptoms as compare to their Western reference groups. The results generally support the view that there is a large degree of universality or commonality of emotional constructs and affect structures between adolescents in the East and West. (Abstract shortened by UMI.) / Results. Good construct and concurrent validity were established for all the scales applied. Both the two-factor model and the tripartite model showed good fit to our data which also supported the various predictions by the models. Moreover, the results provided good evidence for the hierarchical model in which NA and PA were interpreted as higher orders, whereas Physiological Hyperarousal (PH), DSM-IV anxiety disorders, and depression were specific lower order factors. Consistent with the content-specificity hypothesis, anxious and depressive cognitions were found to specifically predict anxiety and depressive symptoms respectively. / Kwok, Wai Yee Alice. / "April 2007." / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-01, Section: B, page: 0221. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 155-179). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. [Ann Arbor, MI] : ProQuest Information and Learning, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Abstracts in English and Chinese. / School code: 1307.

The study was designed to explore and describe the relationship between young adults' sense of meaning and purpose in life and the experience of depression. The relationship between the existential constructs of meaning and purpose in life, assessed using Reker's (1992) Life Attitude Profile - Revised (LAP-R) instrument, and depression, assessed using Beck's Depression Inventory (BDI), was explored in young adults.