| Popis: |
Previous research has demonstrated the effectiveness of school-based depression prevention programs in reducing depressive symptoms and improving functioning. The present study examined the important question of whether these programs have positive effects on school-related outcomes. Students at 10 middle and high schools in New Jersey were randomized to weekly sessions of Interpersonal Psychotherapy – Adolescent Skills Training (IPT-AST) or group counseling (GC). Analyses examined whether there were intervention effects on participants’ grades, attendance rates, and disciplinary outcomes over approximately one year post-intervention. In addition, demographic characteristics and pre-intervention values on relevant variables (e.g., grades pre-intervention) were examined as moderators of intervention effects. Level of change in depressive symptoms was assessed as a predictor of outcomes. Results did not indicate significant intervention effects on any outcome variable. Moderators of intervention effects included family income on overall grades, age pre-intervention on math grades, and number of tardies pre-intervention on numbers of tardies post-intervention. Moderation outcomes indicated more favorable effects of IPT-AST among certain higher-risk subgroups. Participants who experienced meaningful improvements in their depressive symptoms had significantly more positive outcomes on overall grades than those who did not experience improvements in their symptoms, regardless of intervention condition. Although study participants experienced decreases in their academic performance over the study period, post hoc analyses suggested their trajectories were favorable compared to normative trends. Findings indicate that IPT-AST and GC may have had modest positive effects on academic performance; results on rates of attendance and disciplinary incidents were less notable. Further research is needed to clarify the effects of depression prevention programs on these school-related outcomes. |
