From a prospective study of the development of psychopathology, 129 adolescents were identified who transitioned to a new school in ninth grade. The current study examined the contributions of sex, interpersonal and achievement orientations, peer and academic stressors, and their interactions to the prediction of depressive and aggressive symptoms following the high-school transition. Among girls, higher levels of interpersonal and achievement orientations were associated with increases in depressive and aggressive symptoms, respectively, following the experience of domain-congruent stressors. The positive relation between academic stressors and depressive symptoms was significantly stronger for girls than boys. For boys, high levels of academic stressors were associated with increases in aggressive symptoms regardless of their level of achievement orientation.

From a prospective study of 185 offspring of depressed mothers, 51 children were identified in sixth grade as being high competent, which was defined as high functioning and without psychopathology. During the next 2 years, 18 of these high competent children developed problems. Compared to these 18 decreased competent children, the 33 continuously competent children reported at Time 1 significantly more commitment to achievement, more positive coping, better family relationships, and greater social support. In addition, the decreased competence group reported experiencing more hassles during junior high school. Both commitment to achievement and better family relationships moderated the relation between school hassles and competence. That is, among adolescents experiencing higher levels of hassles during junior high school, greater commitment to achievement and better family relationships were associated with higher competence.

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This study examined the relations among maternal depression, family dysfunction, emotional autonomy, and adolescent adjustment. Participants were 145 mothers and children who were assessed in eighth grade (mean age = 13.51, SD = .57) and again in ninth grade. Results indicated that maternal depression significantly moderated the relation between emotional autonomy and adolescent adjustment. Among offspring of depressed mothers, higher levels of emotional autonomy (detachment) significantly predicted increases in internalizing and externalizing problems, whereas among offspring of nondepressed mothers, higher levels of emotional autonomy significantly predicted decreases in adolescents' symptoms. Within families of depressed mothers, family dysfunction significantly predicted adolescent symptoms, and this relation was partially mediated through emotional autonomy. These results further highlight the importance of considering the family context in studies of adolescent autonomy.

This short-term prospective study examined the contribution of aggression and depression, stressful life events, and their interactions to the prediction of peer rejection. Subjects were 497 fifth- and sixth-grade children who completed questionnaires at two time points separated by approximately 3 months. Levels of peer rejection and aggression were assessed by peer nominations; level of depressive symptoms and number of stressful life events were measured by self-report questionnaires. Controlling for sex and baseline level of peer rejection, aggression directly predicted peer rejection. In contrast, depressive symptoms interacted with life stress to predict peer rejection. Examination of the Depression × Stress interaction revealed that depressive symptoms in children who had experienced high levels of life stress were not associated with increased levels of peer rejection, whereas depressive symptoms in children with low levels of stress were predictive of subsequent peer rejection. Several interpretations of these findings and directions for future research are suggested.