Depression and Quality of Life in Emerging Adulthood

Abstract

Emerging adulthood, defined as the ages of 18–25, is a developmental period characterized by significant life transitions. These transitions can lead to positive and negative responses, including depressive symptoms. Quality of life may be impacted depressive symptoms, though research has not defined what this relationship may be. A sample of 128 emerging adults completed a digital survey where they were administered the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and the Quality of Life Scale (QOLS) to measure this, with demographic information on gender identity also collected. It was hypothesized that higher depressive symptom severity would correspond to lower quality of life endorsement, with severely depressed individuals reporting lower quality of life. Gender was thought to act as a covariate. Data were analyzed to explore these hypotheses, using 2-tailed correlation and an analysis of covariance. Results confirmed an inverse relationship between depression severity and quality of life, with gender creating a small effect (?p2 = 0.349). Findings highlighted a need for further targeted mental health interventions for emerging adults. Implications of these findings and future research directions are discussed.