They show that mood swings in depressed children alternate with days of a pervasive down mood. These moods involve sadness, loneliness, unhappiness, hypersensitivity, overreactivity, and negative attitudes. All of this is combined with irritability caused by sadness, self-deprecation ("I am worthless, stupid, and ugly"), feelings of being persecuted by others, an aggressive orientation toward authority, argumentativeness, and suicidal thoughts. Present as well is the trend of self-isolation or withdrawal from friends and a loss of social interest. Depressed children predict that activities at school will be boring, and thus tend to watch peers rather than participate (Friedberg & McClure, 2002). This decreased involvement in pleasure perpetuates their isolation. When related to school performance, this means lowered desire to complete schoolwork, turning in incomplete work, trouble concentrating, resistance to participation, and changed peer-groups.

While there are biological explanations for childhood depression that emphasize genetic factors and neurochemical determinants, this paper wants...
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