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<p>Depression is among the most prevalent mental health issues affecting adolescents. Parents may play an important role in identifying warning signs of depression and providing support. However, little is known about how parents understand and respond to the early signs of adolescent depression, or their depression literacy (DL). The factors associated with their DL are also unclear. This questionnaire-based study aimed to explore DL in a sample of primary caregivers (<i>n</i> = 321, <i>M</i><sub>age</sub> = 46.2 years, 76% female) of 12–18-year-old adolescents living in the Republic of Ireland, through responses to a vignette depicting a character displaying symptoms of depression. Two-thirds (66.7%) attributed the character’s symptoms to depression, while 92.2% believed the character needed help. One third (34.6%) believed asking the adolescent about suicide would be harmful. Only parent empathy significantly predicted labelling the symptoms as ‘depression’. Contrary to hypotheses, there were no significant differences identified based on parents’ gender, their child’s gender, or their child’s age. To our knowledge, this study is the first to explore the link between empathy and DL in parents, and may inform targeted interventions to improve DL.</p>

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Depression Literacy in Parents of Adolescents in Ireland: Exploring Associations with Gender, Age of Adolescent, and Empathy

  • 期刊论文

  • 出版模式：

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  • 发表日期：

    2025年1月8日

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  • Sadhbh J. Byrne,
  • Elizabeth Nixon,
  • Lorraine Swords

摘要

Depression is among the most prevalent mental health issues affecting adolescents. Parents may play an important role in identifying warning signs of depression and providing support. However, little is known about how parents understand and respond to the early signs of adolescent depression, or their depression literacy (DL). The factors associated with their DL are also unclear. This questionnaire-based study aimed to explore DL in a sample of primary caregivers (n = 321, Mage = 46.2 years, 76% female) of 12–18-year-old adolescents living in the Republic of Ireland, through responses to a vignette depicting a character displaying symptoms of depression. Two-thirds (66.7%) attributed the character’s symptoms to depression, while 92.2% believed the character needed help. One third (34.6%) believed asking the adolescent about suicide would be harmful. Only parent empathy significantly predicted labelling the symptoms as ‘depression’. Contrary to hypotheses, there were no significant differences identified based on parents’ gender, their child’s gender, or their child’s age. To our knowledge, this study is the first to explore the link between empathy and DL in parents, and may inform targeted interventions to improve DL.