Chronic and acute stress and the prediction of major depression in women
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: This study explored the relatively neglected role of chronic stress in major depression, examining the independent contributions of co-occurring chronic and acute stress to depression, whether chronic stress predicts acute life events, and whether the two types of stress interact such that greater chronic stress confers greater sensitivity-or resistance-to the depressive effects of acute stressors. METHODS: From a sample of 816 community women, those who had a major depression onset in the past 9 months and those without major depressive episodes (MDE) onset and with no history of current or recent dysthymic disorder were compared on interview-based measures of antecedent acute and chronic stress. Chronic stress interviews rated objective stress in multiple everyday role domains, and acute stress was evaluated with contextual threat interviews. RESULTS: MDE onset was significantly associated with both chronic and acute stress; chronic stress was also associated with the occurrence of acute events, and there was a trend suggesting that increased acute stress is more strongly associated with depression in those with high versus low chronic stress. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest the importance of including assessment of chronic stress in fully understanding the extent and mechanisms of stress-depression relationships.
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Higher ongoing perceived stress, lower social support, and use of maladaptive coping strategies may increase the risk for PTSD or depression.
“Finally, higher ongoing perceived stress, lower social support, as well as use of maladaptive coping strategies, may also increase the risk for PTSD or depression.”
From I've Seen Enough: Measuring the Toll of Content Moderation on Mental Health (2025) · cites this paper as Hammen et al., 2009
The Discussion reports that chronic stress was associated with the onset of major depression in adult women. But the Measures section says respondents’ subjective perceptions of stress were not scored, and the paper does not establish the claimed effects of low social support or maladaptive coping, or address PTSD as an outcome. Page numbers are unavailable in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.88)
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References 33 · Cited by 347
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- Authors
- Hammen, C., Kim, E. Y., Eberhart, N. K., & Brennan, P. A.
- Affiliations
- University of California, Los Angeles (US)
- Emory University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Hammen, Constance
- Venue
- Depression and Anxiety
- Publisher
- Hindawi Limited
- Published
- 2009-08
- Volume
- 26
- Issue
- 8
- Pages
- 718-723
- ISSN
- 1091-4269 (ISSN-L)
- 1520-6394
- PMC
- PMC3380803
- OpenAlex
- W2114026066
- Cited by
- 347
- References
- 33
- Citations by year
- 2026: 16 · 2025: 17 · 2024: 23 · 2023: 22 · 2022: 36 · 2021: 48 · 2020: 34 · 2019: 25 · 2018: 20 · 2017: 12 · 2016: 15 · 2015: 19 · 2014: 17 · 2013: 15 · 2012: 11
- FWCI
- 11.43
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Depression and Anxiety (publishedVersion, public-domain)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute of Mental Health (R01 MH 52239, R01MH052239, 5-T32-MH14584, T32MH014584)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Behavioral Neuroscience › Stress Responses and Cortisol
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Health and Well-being Studies
- Keywords
- chronic stress, acute stress, major depressive episode, women, life events, stress sensitivity, stress tolerance
- MeSH terms
- Acute Disease, Adult, Chronic Disease, Major Depressive Disorder, Depressive Disorder, Major, Female, Humans, Interview, Psychological, Life Change Events, Longitudinal Studies, Middle Aged, Risk Factors, Social Environment, Statistics as Topic, Stress, Psychological, Cohort Studies
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