Sex-Specific Depressive Symptom Trajectories Among Adolescents in Los Angeles County, 2013 to 2017

ObjectiveAfter remaining stable for many years, the prevalence of depression among adolescents increased over the past decade, particularly among girls. In this study, we used longitudinal data from a cohort of high school students to characterize sex-specific trajectories of depressive symptoms during this period of increasing prevalence and widening gender gap in adolescent depression.MethodUsing data from the Health and Happiness Cohort, a longitudinal 8-wave study of high school students residing in Los Angeles County from 2013 to 2017 (N = 3,393), we conducted a multiple group latent class growth analysis by sex to differentiate developmental trajectories in depressive symptoms scores measured by the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression (CES-D) scale (Range: 0 - 60).ResultsA four-class solution provided the best model fit for both girls and boys. Trajectories among girls included Low Stable (35.1%), Mild Stable (42.8%), Moderate Decreasing (16.2%), and High Arching (5.9%). Trajectories among boys included Low Stable (49.2%), Mild Increasing (34.7%), Moderate Decreasing (12.2%), and High Increasing (3.9%). Average scores consistently exceeded or crossed the threshold for probable depression (≥16). Across comparable sex-specific trajectory groups, girls’ average CES-D scores were higher than boys’, whose average scores increased over time.ConclusionIn a diverse cohort of students in Los Angeles County, depressive symptom trajectories were comparable to prior time periods but with a higher proportion of students in trajectories characterized by probable depression. Trajectories differed by sex, suggesting that future research should consider differential severity and onset of depression between boys and girls.