| Depression increases in adolescence, particulary by girls. Relational problems seem to play a role in this findings. Since friendships with peers become increasingly important in adolescence, the aim of the project is to find out why some children have problems in building these relationships and how this may lead to depression in adolescence. The answer to this question is sought in (the development of) non-verbal communication skills, in both typical children (school population) and children with depression (clinical group) aged 12 to 18 years. Data will be collected by means of tests, questionnaires and behavioral observations in a longitudinal-sequential research design. |
