Abstract

The present study compared women who scored above 24 on CES-D and met the DSM-IV criteria of Major Depressive Disorder(Clinical Depression Group) and women who scored above 24 on CES-D but did not meet the DSM-IV criteria of Major Depressive Disorder(Subclinical Depression Group) on psychosocial characteristics and persistence of depressive symptoms. 591 women between the ages of 20 and 60 who live in the metropolitan Seoul area responded to the questionnaire consisting of CES-D, Social Adjustment Scale-self report form, questions concerning DSM-IV MDD criteria, life stress, coping style, perceived social support, and self efficacy; of the 591, 150 women responded to the second wave of questionnaire at the 3 month follow-up. At the initial assessment, 8.1% of the 591 women were categorized as Clinical Depression Group, and another 15.4%, Subclinical Depression Group. The Subclinical Depression Group did not differ significantly from the Clinical Depression Group on the level of self reported life stress, perceived social support, social adjustment-subjective satisfaction and self-efficacy. However, the two groups differed significantly on the style of coping behaviors and functional aspect of social adjustment with the Clinical Depression Group showing more severe impairment. Furthermore, the Clinical Depression Group were more likely to remain depressed at the 3 month follow-up than the Subclinical Depression Group. The results were discussed in terms of implications for clinical management of women with clinical and subclinical depression.