Adolescents With Depressive Symptoms and Their Challenges With Learning in School

We examine school performance among 83 adolescents at risk for major depression. Negative mood interfered with subjective measures of school performance, including ability to do well in school, homework completion, concentrate in class, interact with peers, and going to class. No significant relationships were found for mood and objective measures of school performance (school attendance, English, and Math grades). Students with a college-educated parent had stronger performance in objective measures (school attendance and Math grades), whereas males had lower English grades. In qualitative interviews, adolescents reported that negative thinking led to procrastination, which led to poor school performance, which led to more negative thinking. Adolescents with depressive symptoms that do not meet the threshold for referral report struggles in school. Understanding the specific challenges faced by adolescents with even low levels of depressive symptoms can help school nurses, teachers, and parents identify appropriate interventions to help adolescents succeed in school.