Associations between parental depressive symptoms and video-elicited emotions

Loading...
Thumbnail Image
Penn collection
Interdisciplinary Centers, Units and Projects::Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships (CURF)::Spring Research Symposium
Degree type
Discipline
Adult and Continuing Education
Subject
depression
emotion elicitation
parental depression
discrete emotions
film clips
Funder
Grant number
Copyright date
2025-04-24
Distributor
Related resources
Author
Sadie S. Kilar
Rebecca Waller
Contributor
Waller
Abstract

Depression is a pervasive mental health disorder characterized by persistent sadness, loss of interest, and impairments in emotional, cognitive, and physical functioning. Disruptions in emotional processing are central, often involving both blunted reactivity to positive or neutral cues, consistent with the Emotion Context Insensitivity (ECI) hypothesis, and heightened reactivity to mood-congruent negative stimuli. Though seemingly contradictory, these processes may together sustain depressive symptoms. This study used validated film clips to elicit fear, happiness, sadness, and anger in a racially and ethnically diverse sample of 440 parents. Participants completed a video rating task and the PHQ-8. Depression severity was not significantly associated with emotional reactivity, though a marginal trend emerged for anger. Participants with minoritized identities reported higher PHQ-8 scores and lower fear ratings than White peers. Race and ethnicity did not moderate the depression-emotion link. Findings underscore the importance of using inclusive emotion elicitation paradigms and highlight the need for further research in diverse parent samples.

Advisor
Date of presentation
2025-04-11
Conference name
Conference dates
Conference location
Date Range for Data Collection (Start Date)
Date Range for Data Collection (End Date)
Digital Object Identifier
Series name and number
Volume number
Issue number
Publisher
Publisher DOI
Journal Issue
Comments
College Alumni Society Undergraduate Research Grant
Recommended citation
Kilar, S. (2025, April). Associations between parental depressive symptoms and video-elicited emotions. Poster presented at the University of Pennsylvania Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships (CURF) Spring Research Expo, Philadelphia, PA.
Collection