Background. The quality of subjective experience of dysphoria may predict persistence of depression, independently of severity. This is tested in a clinic sample of adolescents with first episode of major depression using the Depressed States Checklist adapted for adolescents.

Method. Ninety-four adolescents with DSM-IV major depressive disorder (MDD) were followed up at 12 months. Self-devaluative components of dysphoric experience, ruminative style, overgeneral autobiographical memory, and self-reported and observer-rated measures of depression severity were assessed at presentation and evaluated as predictors of persistent MDD.

Results. Persistent MDD was predicted by the independent additive effects of the higher self-devaluative component of dysphoria, lower general intelligence and greater observer-rated severity of depression at presentation. Neither self-reported depression score, overgeneral memory retrieval nor ruminative style contributed.

Conclusions. High levels of self-devaluative dysphoric experience increase the liability for persistence of first-episode MDD. Other affective-cognitive components also contribute. The adolescent version of the Depressed States Checklist is a useful brief measure of cognitive vulnerability for persistence in currently depressed young people.