Parental practices and depressive symptomatology in Cuban adolescents Prácticas parentales y sintomatología depresiva en adolescentes cubanos

Abstract

A descriptive, correlational non-experimental study was designed to assess how parental practices of fathers and mothers influence the presence of depressive symptomatology in their teenage children. The study was conducted from January to May 2016. The study included 508 participants, all adolescents of both genders, who study in secondary and high school level institutions (ages 12 to 16) in Santiago de Cuba. The goal was to determine the correlation between parental practices of both parents and the presence of depressive symptomatology in their teenage children. Andrade and Betancourt's, Parental Practices Scale for adolescents was applied. The Scale of Depression designed and validated by González, Jimenez, Ramos and Wagner was also used. The study results show the presence of depressive symptomatology at low levels in the population studied, being more prevalent in women. A more significant presence of such symptomatology in females is mainly associated with the relationships with their mothers.