Negative interpersonal events and social stress are well identified risk factors for the onset and course of depression. The mechanisms that explain why depression-prone people get entangled in these negative interactions, however, are insufficiently understood. In previous studies we have demonstrated that the more similar the nonverbal involvement behavior of depressed patients and of interviewers becomes during a baseline interview the more favorable the subsequent course of depression will turn out to be. Such nonverbal similarity has been shown to play a role in rapport and in satisfaction with interactions. We hypothesize that 1) lack of nonverbal similarity also underlies the occurrence of negative interpersonal events and 2) these events mediate the association between lack of nonverbal similarity and recurrence of depression.

From videotaped baseline interviews we registered the nonverbal involvement displays of 101 remitted depressed patients and of interviewers. The patients were followed up to 2 years.

Lack of nonverbal similarity (cox regression: p=.031) and interpersonal events (cox regression: p<.001) predict recurrence of depression. Lack of similarity also predicts interpersonal events (cox regression: p=.003). The events mediated the association between convergence and recurrence of depression.

The findings indicate that nonverbal communication underlies the stressful events that in turn provoke a (new) depressive episode.