The Moderating Effect of Gender: Traumatic Experiences and Depression in Adolescence

Depression may severely affect adolescents in sundry areas. Research demonstrates that girls have greater prevalence of depression than boys since adolescence and that traumatic experiences are predictors of depression. The present study aims to explore if traumatic experiences are predictors of depressive symptoms in adolescence and if gender moderates that relationship. The participants were 319 adolescents aged between 13 and 15 years old, attending the 8th and 9th grade in public schools, who participated in a Portuguese study about prevention of adolescent depression. Self-report questionnaires were used to assess traumatic experiences, measured by the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ), and depressive symptoms, measured by The Childhood Depression Inventory (CDI). Results showed that the female gender had higher levels of depressive symptoms and also demonstrated a significant correlation between depressive symptoms, emotional abuse and emotional neglect for both genders. Furthermore, these traumatic experiences were predictors of depressive symptoms and a moderating effect of gender on the relationship between emotional neglect and depressive symptoms was found. This moderating effect suggests that for the same levels of emotional neglect girls showed higher levels of depressive symptoms. These findings emphasize the contribution of the emotional component of traumatic experiences on depression.