Adolescent depression in Tobago

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the prevalence of depressive symptomatology, major depression and dysthymia in a sample of Tobagonian adolescents. A stratified random sample of 203 adolescent students was selected from three schools in Tobago by random number generation of the total number of schools. The subjects were administered the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale (RADS) and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9). The ages of the adolescents ranged from 14-18 years (mean 16.3). Females comprised 60% of the sample. Eighty-five percent were Africans, 14% mixed and 1% Indians. Ninety-nine percent belonged to Christian-based religions. Females were more likely to have depressive symptomatology (p < 0.01) and major depression than males (p < 0.05). There were no gender differences in dysthymia. Separate analyses of the RADS and PHQ-9 were consistent with a finding of 10.1% of the sample having a depressive symptomatology and 10.1% suffering from a depressive disorder of which 6.06% were rated as dysthymia and 4.04% as major depression. The rate of adolescent depression in Tobago was 10.1 percent and at the lower range similar to international data of developed countries. This may be explained by the presence of a well-integrated, homogeneous Christian-based society devoid of multiculturalism. The Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale (RADS) is an effective screening measure for depression in Tobagonian adolescents and can be used in other Caribbean countries. The PHQ-9 can be employed to identify adolescents in the community that meet the criteria for depressive disorders.