Weakened Brain Network Connectivity in Adolescent Depression
How does depression affect teenage brain networks?
Adolescent depression weakens communication between brain networks responsible for attention and self-reflection, making it harder to switch between internal thoughts and external focus. A neuroimaging study of 30 adolescents with depression and 32 healthy controls found that key brain regions showed reduced ability to regulate each other’s activity.
Depression disrupts communication between the salience network (which filters important information) and the default mode network (active during self-reflection), explaining why depressed teenagers struggle with attention and get trapped in negative thought patterns.