Influence of dyadic sibling relationships on depressive symptoms from adolescence into early adulthood
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Abstract
This investigation utilized dyadic sibling data from The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) to examine the influence of sibling relationships on depressive symptoms from adolescence to emerging adulthood. An Actor-Partner Interdependence Model was employed to determine the direction and influence of siblings on one another’s depressive symptoms and relationships. The results of the study suggest that sibling pairs influence one another from adolescence to early adulthood in terms of experiences with depressive symptoms, sibling fighting and sibling closeness. Elevated levels of depressive symptoms, sibling fighting and sibling closeness in adolescence for one sibling were found to correspond with increased depressive symptoms, sibling closeness and lower levels of fighting in early adulthood for the other sibling. Group comparisons between sibling pairs from divorced families and sibling pairs from families with intact parental marriages were completed and revealed no significant difference between groups.