Family cohesion and depression in adolescents: a mediating role of self-confidence

Abstract Objective: To identify the mediating role of self-confidence in family cohesion and depression in adolescents. Methods: The cross-sectional research design was used and study was conducted in the mainstream government schools of Lahore. A sample of 394 adolescents (boys = 54%, girls = 46%), aged 12-19 years (M = 14.76; SD = 1.39) recruited through multistage sampling strategy. Family Cohesion Scale, Self-confidence Scale and Depression Scale for Adolescents were used to measure family cohesion, self-confidence and depression respectively. Results: A significant positive association between family cohesion and self-confidence (p < .001), and a significant negative association of family cohesion (p < .001) and self-confidence (p < .01) with depression was found. Moreover, mediation analysis revealed that self-confidence partially mediates the relationship between family cohesion and depression (p = .01). Conclusion: Early and timely identification of risk factors can prevent from serious consequences of depression in adolescents. Keywords: Family cohesion, self-confidence, depression, adolescents.