Depression is a psychological disorder frequently characterized by recurrent episodes over an afflicted individual's lifetime. The proposed investigation will prospectively study the relationship of stressful life events with recurrence of depressive episodes for a sample of individuals defined to be at high risk by virtue of a personal history of multiple (3+) clinical episodes. Approximately 125 individuals participating in a maintenance treatment research program for recurrent depression will be followed over a 3 1/2 year time period. Detailed life events assessments will be conducted 15 times (approximately every 3-months) over the course of the study, and additionally each time a subject experiences a recurrence. The specific goals of the project are to elucidate the role of life events in relation to the onset of a clinical depressive episode in this rigorously defined sample. Secondary objectives include the development, refinement, and testing of alternative life events assessment procedures specifically designed to increase the reliability and sensitivity of this measurement process. Issues concerning research design, statistical procedures, and generalizability of the final results are extensively discussed. Finally, the long-term objective is to delineate the etiologic importance of psychosocial stressors for depressive episodes in other subgroups (e.g., individuals without a history of recurrent episodes), and--ultimately--to provide the empirical foundation for developing intervention programs designed to reduce risk for depression in vulnerable individuals.
