Depressed mood amongst adolescents: The roles of perceived control and coping style

Abstract

The present study explores the link between perceived control (locus of causation and perceived competence), self-reported coping style (productive and nonproductive coping), and depressed mood amongst a sample of high school students. Internal locus beliefs positively predicted productive coping and negatively predicted non-productive coping. Perceived competence positively predicted productive coping and negatively predicted depressed mood. Non-productive coping positively predicted depressed mood. Findings are discussed with a focus on the implications for counselling professionals in promoting adolescent resilience to depression..