Parent-child interaction and adult depression:: a prospective study

Objective: The aim was to examine the relationship between parent-child interaction in middle childhood and adult depression in a group of women (n=54) who were studied prospectively. Method: The sample was drawn from a longitudinal study of family functioning and children's difficulties in an inner London borough. Statistical methods, implemented in SUDAAN, accounted for the initial multistage sampling. Results: The results suggested that indicators of lack of positive parent-child interaction based on maternal reports when the child was 10 years of age were significantly associated with depression some 20 years later. No parallel association was found between overtly negative aspects of parenting and depression. Conclusion: There was some evidence of a link between parent-child interaction in middle childhood and adult depression, although the mechanism for this remains unclear.