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A Multi-Level Analysis on School Connectedness, Family Support, and Adolescent Depression: Evidence from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, 1995–1996

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  • Lin Zhu

    (Center for Asian Health, Lewis Katz School of Medicine, Temple University, 3440 N Broad St., Kresge Bldg, Ste. 320, Philadelphia, PA 19140, USA)

Abstract

Objective : The purpose of this study is to gain insight into the effect of family support, school connectedness, and school environments on depressive symptoms among adolescents across racial/ethnic groups on both the student-level and school-level. Method : This study uses a sample of 4228 students (2122 girls and 2016 boys) from the public use data of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health. Students were measured at two time points (one year apart) on school connectedness, family support, socio-demographic factors, and the Center for Epidemiological Studies’ Depression Scale. Hierarchical Linear Modeling was used to examine potential predictors on adolescent depressive symptoms. This is, to the best of the author’s knowledge, the first study to examine the interplay of school connectedness, school racial composition, and adolescent depression. Results : School connectedness partially mediates the effects of family support on depressive symptoms, but both remain strong predictors of depressive symptoms. African American adolescents are the only racial/ethnic group that has constantly higher CES-D scores than the non-Hispanic white adolescents. School-level connectedness is positively related to students’ depressive symptoms. The racial composition of a school has different effects on students’ depressive symptoms on student’s race. Conclusions : Low perceived family support, low school connectedness, being female, and being African American are consistently associated with greater depressive symptoms one year later. The overall level of school connectedness of a school is found to be related with greater individual student’s depressive symptoms, while the effects of school proportion of minority students on students’ depressive symptoms differ significantly across the race/ethnicity of students. Future study is needed to explore the association between racial/ethnic segregation and adolescent depression while considering students’ racial/ethnic status.

Suggested Citation

  • Lin Zhu, 2018. "A Multi-Level Analysis on School Connectedness, Family Support, and Adolescent Depression: Evidence from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, 1995–1996," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 7(5), pages 1-16, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jscscx:v:7:y:2018:i:5:p:72-:d:143084
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Lin Zhu, 2017. "Depression Risks and Correlates among Different Generations of Chinese Americans: The Effects of Relationships with Friends and Relatives," Social Sciences, MDPI, vol. 6(2), pages 1-18, June.
    2. Ross, Catherine E. & Mirowsky, John, 2006. "Sex differences in the effect of education on depression: Resource multiplication or resource substitution?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 63(5), pages 1400-1413, September.
    3. Joyce, Hilary D. & Early, Theresa J., 2014. "The impact of school connectedness and teacher support on depressive symptoms in adolescents: A multilevel analysis," Children and Youth Services Review, Elsevier, vol. 39(C), pages 101-107.
    4. Walsemann, Katrina M. & Bell, Bethany A. & Maitra, Debeshi, 2011. "The intersection of school racial composition and student race/ethnicity on adolescent depressive and somatic symptoms," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 72(11), pages 1873-1883, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Cherier Mae G. Logroño & Celso L. Tagadiad, 2023. "Instructional Leadership and Ethical Climate as Determinants of School Connectedness," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 7(1), pages 750-769, January.
    2. Maria Jones & Marit Råbu & Jan Ivar Røssberg & Randi Ulberg, 2020. "Therapists’ Experiences of Psychodynamic Therapy with and without Transference Interventions for Adolescents with Depression," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(13), pages 1-18, June.

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