List at least five symptoms of major depressive disorder and explain why adolescent females have a higher rate of depression than do adolescent males.

Question

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Answer 1

The American Psychiatric Association lists nine symptoms that define a major depressive episode. To be classified as having a major depressive disorder, at least five of these must be present during a two week period: depressed mood most of the day; reduced interest or pleasure in most activities; significant weight loss or gain, or significant decrease or increase in appetite; trouble sleeping or sleeping too much; psychomotor agitation or retardation; fatigue or loss of energy; feeling worthless or guilty in an excessive or inappropriate manner; problems in thinking, concentrating, or making decisions; recurrent thoughts of death and suicide. In a recent study, at 12 years of age, 5.2 percent of females compared with 2 percent of males had experienced first-onset depression. Among the reasons for this gender difference are that females tend to ruminate in their depressed mood and amplify it; females' self-images, especially in their body images, are more negative than males'; females face more discrimination than males do; and puberty occurs earlier for girls than for boys. As a result, girls experience a confluence of changes and life experiences in the middle school years that can increase depression.