DYSPHORIA AND CHILDRENS PROCESSING OF SUPPORTIVE INTERACTIONS

This study examined the processing of supportive interactions by dysph oric and nondysphoric preteens and early adolescents. Seventy-two youn gsters between the ages of 10 and 13 evaluated the supportiveness and helpfulness of standardized, videotaped interactions between a distres sed preadolescent and a maternal figure. The tape presentations varied in terms of the level of depicted maternal support and instructional condition (degree of self-reference). The results indicated that dysph oric youngsters evaluated both the supportiveness and helpfulness of i nteractions less positively than nondysphoric agemates. Group differen ces in support evaluations were most pronounced in the self-referenced condition. The level of depicted support did not affect processing di fferences. Dysphoric subjects reported lower levels of emotional suppo rt in prior relationships and a greater tendency to view supportive be havior as ingenuine than nondysphoric peers. Variation in prior suppor t experiences accounted for group differences in the evaluation of the supportiveness of new interactions.