Social-vocational adjustment in unipolar mood disorders: results of the DSM-IV field trial.

Overview

430 patients participating in the DSM-IV field trial receiving a DSM-III-R SCID-derived diagnosis of episodic major depression (n = 131), dysthymic disorder (n = 37) and double depression (n = 262) completed the social adjustment scale-self-report (Weissman and Bothwell, 1976). Patients with double depression demonstrated greater social morbidity than those suffering from episodic major depression or dysthymic disorder (P < 0.05). Significant predictors of high social morbidity in double depressives included severity of symptoms (P < 0.0001), followed by age of onset of first major depression (P < 0.04). Subscale analysis revealed that double depressives were significantly more impaired in work outside the home and in terms of their financial status (P < 0.05).