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Girl Talk Leads To Anxiety And Depression

It seems the normally calming effect of expressing your troubles may not kick in if you're a teenage girl who spends a lot of time discussing them.

University of Missouri associate professor of psychological sciences Amanda Rose reports that 'co-rumination,' the act of excessively talking about problems with one's friends, is associated with increased levels of depression and anxiety among teen girls.

Rose's research examined 813 boys and girls in fifth through ninth grade. Over a period of six months, they answered questionnaires assessing levels of co-rumination, depression, anxiety and quality of friendships. Rose found that girls were more likely to co-ruminate and that this behavior was associated with high levels of depression and anxiety. Meanwhile, boys who co-ruminated did not report this effect.

Interestingly, the quality of female friendships also increased with co-rumination. While girls may form positive social bonds by talking about problems, Rose speculates they may participate in too much of a good thing by spending a large percentage of time concentrating on the negative aspects of their lives. She encourages them to try not to dwell on problems with friends and participate in sports and other activities to keep their minds off of them.

Full Text: Prospective Associations of Co-Rumination With Friendship and Emotional Adjustment: Considering the Socioemotional Trade-Offs of Co-Rumination (PDF)