Self-reported depression in nonfamilial caregivers: prevalence and associations with caregiver behavior in child-care settings

The current study describes the prevalence of self-reported depressive symptoms in a sample of 1217 nonfamilial caregivers and examines the relation between depression and the quality of interactions between caregivers and young children. One hundred and fourteen of these caregivers (9.4%) reported clinically significant levels of depressive symptoms. Analyses provided evidence of small, but consistent and unique associations between caregivers' self-reported depression and the quality of their interactions with children. Caregivers reporting more depression were less sensitive and more withdrawn than caregivers reporting fewer depressive symptoms. Depression was more closely associated with negative behavior for caregivers working in family child-care settings, as well as among caregivers with less education and among those that spend more time without other adults present. The current study provides preliminary evidence that expanding knowledge of caregivers' characteristics may be an important component of understanding the nonfamilial caregiving environment. (C) 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.