| Sumario: | Depressive symptoms are prevalent among adolescents. Teacher support may prevent depressive symptoms, but further longitudinal evidence is needed. This study evaluated concurrent and prospective associations between perceived teacher support and depressive symptoms in young adolescents. Using sixth, seventh, and eighth grade measurements from the Developmental Pathways Project, a community-based, diverse cohort study of 521 Seattle Public School students who entered sixth grade between 2001–2004, we estimated associations between adolescent-reported teacher support and adolescent/parent-reported depressive symptoms using generalized estimating equations with Poisson regression, adjusting for relevant covariates including baseline depressive symptoms in prospective associations. We also assessed moderation of associations by exposure to stressful life events (SLEs) and sex. Youth with higher levels of perceived teacher support had fewer concurrent (count ratio (CR) = 0.86; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.83, 0.90) and subsequent depressive symptoms (CR = 0.96; 95% CI: 0.93, 0.98). The negative association between teacher support and current (interaction-p < 0.01) and subsequent (interaction-p = 0.04) depressive symptoms was weaker with more reported SLEs. Sex did not significantly modify the concurrent or prospective associations between teacher support and depressive symptoms, nor in models with three-way interactions between teacher support, SLEs, and sex. This study highlights the key role that teachers can play in bolstering student mental health. However, students experiencing more stress will need additional programming beyond that provided in the classroom to support mental health. Highlights: Youth with higher levels of perceived teacher support had lower levels of current and subsequent depressive symptoms. However, these associations were weaker for youth reporting higher numbers of stressful life events. Teachers may play a role in bolstering mental health, but students with higher stress may need additional programming.
|
|---|