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Parental depressive symptoms as a risk factor for child depressive symptoms; testing the social mediators in internationally adopted children

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Abstract

Parental depressive symptoms have shown to be associated with offspring depression but much of the research has been focused on maternal depression. The aim of our study was to investigate the extent to which depressive symptoms of both parents associate with offspring depressive symptoms and whether social factors mediate these associations using data from adopted children with no shared genetic background. Data were derived from the Finnish Adoption survey study (a subsample of adopted children aged between 9 and 12 years, n = 548). Parental depressive symptoms were measured using short version of the General Health Questionnaire and Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI) was used to measure depressive symptoms in adoptees. Paternal depressive symptoms were related to the total CDI (B = 0.33, p = 0.05) and two dimensions of offspring depressive symptoms: negative mood (B = 0.10, p = 0.03) and interpersonal problems (B = 0.06, p = 0.009). These associations remained significant even when adjusted for child’s age and gender, age at adoption, type of placement before adoption, continent of birth and adoptive family’s SES. No associations were found between maternal and any dimensions of offspring depressive symptoms. No information about the mental health of biological parents was available. We interpret the results as demonstrating that intergenerational transmission of depressive symptoms is not solely related to shared genes. Also, the results highlight the association of paternal depression with offspring depressive symptoms.

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Acknowledgements

ME was supported by the Academy of Finland (265977). The study was supported by the Foundation of Pediatric Research, Finland and EVO Grant from Turku University Hospital.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Helsinki University Hospital, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 590, 00029, Helsinki, Finland

    Krista Liskola & Hanna Raaska

  2. Turku University Hospital, University of Turku, Turku, Finland

    Helena Lapinleimu

  3. Department of Behavioral Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

    Marko Elovainio

  4. National Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki, Finland

    Marko Elovainio

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  1. Krista Liskola
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Correspondence to Krista Liskola.

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Liskola, K., Raaska, H., Lapinleimu, H. et al. Parental depressive symptoms as a risk factor for child depressive symptoms; testing the social mediators in internationally adopted children. Eur Child Adolesc Psychiatry 27, 1585–1593 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00787-018-1154-8

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