The DOI matches its Crossref record; 90 of the 90 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Social group memberships protect against future depression, alleviate depression symptoms and prevent depression relapse
Abstract
A growing body of research suggests that a lack of social connectedness is strongly related to current depression and increases vulnerability to future depression. However, few studies speak to the potential benefits of fostering social connectedness among persons already depressed or to the protective properties of this for future depression trajectories. We suggest that this may be in part because connectedness tends to be understood in terms of (difficult to establish) ties to specific individuals rather than ties to social groups. The current study addresses these issues by using population data to demonstrate that the number of groups that a person belongs to is a strong predictor of subsequent depression (such that fewer groups predicts more depression), and that the unfolding benefits of social group memberships are stronger among individuals who are depressed than among those who are non-depressed. These analyses control for initial group memberships, initial depression, age, gender, socioeconomic status, subjective health status, relationship status and ethnicity, and were examined both proximally (across 2 years, N = 5055) and distally (across 4 years, N = 4087). Depressed respondents with no group memberships who joined one group reduced their risk of depression relapse by 24%; if they joined three groups their risk of relapse reduced by 63%. Together this evidence suggests that membership of social groups is both protective against developing depression and curative of existing depression. The implications of these results for public health and primary health interventions are discussed.
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“naturally occurring improvements in positive social functioning (e.g., connectedness, social group integration) predict reduced subsequent risk for depression (Cruwys et al., 2013; Czyz, Liu, & King, 2012).”
From Enhancing social connectedness in anxiety and depression through amplification of positivity: Preliminary treatment outcomes and process of change (2020) · cites this paper as Cruwys et al., 2013
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It’s not you, it’s me: the emotional response of social rejection in depressive symptomatology
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Self-citation
Metadata
- Authors
- Cruwys, T., Dingle, G. A., Haslam, C., Haslam, S. A., Jetten, J., & Morton, T. A.
- Affiliations
- The University of Queensland (AU)
- University of Exeter (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Cruwys, Tegan
- ORCID
- Venue
- Social Science & Medicine
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2013-12
- Volume
- 98
- Pages
- 179-186
- ISSN
- 0277-9536 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W1974529215
- Cited by
- 525
- References
- 90
- Citations by year
- 2026: 32 · 2025: 31 · 2024: 49 · 2023: 44 · 2022: 63 · 2021: 54 · 2020: 47 · 2019: 45 · 2018: 41 · 2017: 39 · 2016: 34 · 2015: 25 · 2014: 19
- FWCI
- 29.59
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Social Science & Medicine (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute of Aging in the United States
- consortium of UK government departments co-ordinated by the Office for National Statistics
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Health › Health disparities and outcomes
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Mental Health Treatment and Access
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Keywords
- social group membership, depression, depression relapse, social connectedness, social ties, protective factors, depression prevention, social networks
- MeSH terms
- Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Depression, Female, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Male, Middle Aged, Secondary Prevention, Social Participation
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