Childhood Depression: Parents Talk With One Another on the ’Net

Abstract

Childhood depression is a diagnosis made with increasing frequency. Mass media, including message boards on the World Wide Web, are a significant source of both conventional and unconventional ideas regarding health and illness available today, including childhood depression. This study is a discourse analysis of message board content from 66 initiating posts followed by at least six responses devoted to talk among parents about depression in their children. Parents describe their children's depression as a real and specific disease characterized by moods, behaviors, sociability, appearance, school problems, and their own ability to cope. They consider “it” to be caused both by genetics and social events and stressors. They argue that “it” needs to be treated medically, usually with pharmaceuticals and also possibly at times with psychotherapy and support groups. This portrayal reflects a very broad description of what might be considered to be depression along with a narrow range of responses, treatments reflecting critical medicalization, and pharmaceuticalization.

Keywords:

• depression
• children
• adolescents
• message boards
• portrayal