Puberty and Transdiagnostic Risks for Mental Health

Puberty in girls represents a notable period of vulnerability for different psychological disorders. The research literature has primarily considered external and contextual factors that might explain these rises in symptomatology. In the present study, we investigate relations of pubertal status an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of research on adolescence 2020-09, Vol.30 (3), p.687-705
Main Authors: Mendle, Jane, Beam, Christopher R., McKone, Kirsten M. P., Koch, Mary Kate
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent girls
Cognitive-behavioral factors
Girls
Health risks
Mental depression
Mental disorders
Mental health
Psychological research
Puberty
Rumination
Symptoms
Urgency
Vulnerability
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Summary:Puberty in girls represents a notable period of vulnerability for different psychological disorders. The research literature has primarily considered external and contextual factors that might explain these rises in symptomatology. In the present study, we investigate relations of pubertal status and timing with individual cognitive, emotional, and behavioral tendencies, commonly identified as transdiagnostic processes, in a sample of N = 228 girls (Mage = 11.75 years). We also test whether these transdiagnostic processes mediate associations of pubertal status and pubertal timing with depressive symptoms. Results support greater endorsement of rumination, co‐rumination, negative urgency, and both anxious and angry rejection sensitivity in girls with more advanced pubertal status, as well as in girls with early pubertal timing. Higher levels of transdiagnostic processes fully mediated associations of pubertal status and timing with depressive symptoms at significant and marginally significant levels, respectively. Although the data are cross‐sectional, these findings offer promising preliminary evidence that transdiagnostic processes represent an important mental health risk in early adolescent girls.
ISSN:1050-8392
1532-7795
DOI:10.1111/jora.12552