中華心理衛生協會

Purpose: This study explored depressive disorder, suicidality, predicting relations of depressive disorder and suicidal tendency, and their changes after one year among Taiwan's adolescents with high depressive mood. Methods: In the first stage, the Taiwanese Depression Questionnaire (TDQ) was used to screen 5,259 students from four senior high and vocational schools in Hualien, Taiwan. Interviews were subsequently conducted by psychiatrists to determine a diagnosis using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI). Results: Three main results were identified. First, females had a higher percentage of scores in the 21-28 range and above 29 on the TDQ than males. Likewise 12th graders had a higher percentage of scores than that of 10th or 11th graders in these ranges. Second, 35.6% and 24% of students with high depressive mood were diagnosed as having depressive disorder in the first and second year, respectively. Suicidal tendency was 38.9% and 20.9% in the first and second year. After one year, the percentages decreased. Third, depressive disorders had considerable continuity and predictive power over time. Conclusions: Using a two-stage design is highly recommended to identify students with depressive disorder and suicidal tendency.