Chronic and acute stress and the prediction of major depression in women

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Constance Hammen, University of California, Los Angeles; Eunice Y. Kim, University of California, Los Angeles; Nicole K. Eberhart, University of California, Los Angeles; Patricia Brennan, Emory University
• Language: English
• Date: 2009-08-01
• Publisher: Wiley: 12 months
• Publication Version: Author Accepted Manuscript (After Peer Review)
• Copyright Statement: This article is a US Government work and, as such, is in the public domain in the United States of America. Published in 2009 by Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/da.20571
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Depression and Anxiety
• ISSN: 1091-4269
• Volume: 26
• Issue: 8
• Start Page: 718
• End Page: 723
• Grant/Funding Information: This study was supported by R01 MH52239 (NIMH) awarded to Constance Hammen and Patricia Brennan; and by National Research Service Award postdoctoral fellowships (NIMH Grant 5-T32-MH14584) awarded to Eunice Kim and Nicole Eberhart.
• Keywords: Cohort Studies; Humans; Statistics as Topic; Stress, Psychological; Middle Aged; Life Change Events; Longitudinal Studies; Risk Factors; Female; Interview, Psychological; Depressive Disorder, Major; Acute Disease; Social Environment; Adult; Chronic Disease
• Research Categories: Psychology, Clinical; Health Sciences, Mental Health

Abstract

Background: This study explored the relatively neglected role of chronic stress in major depression, examining the independent contributions of co-occurring chronic and acute stress to depression, whether chronic stress predicts acute life events, and whether the two types of stress interact such that greater chronic stress confers greater sensitivity - or resistance - to the depressive effects of acute stressors. Methods: From a sample of 816 community women, those who had a major depression onset in the past 9 months and those without major depressive episodes (MDE) onset and with no history of current or recent dysthymic disorder were compared on interview-based measures of antecedent acute and chronic stress. Chronic stress interviews rated objective stress in multiple everyday role domains, and acute stress was evaluated with contextual threat interviews. Results: MDE onset was significantly associated with both chronic and acute stress; chronic stress was also associated with the occurrence of acute events, and there was a trend suggesting that increased acute stress is more strongly associated with depression in those with high versus low chronic stress. Conclusions: Results suggest the importance of including assessment of chronic stress in fully understanding the extent and mechanisms of stress-depression relationships.