1. ABOUT THE DATASET ------------ Title: Data supporting ´Anhedonia and its subcomponent processes predict symptoms of clinical depression and loneliness in young people´ Creator(s): Katie Prizeman (katiediab@gmail.com), ORCiD https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3960-6467 Organisation(s): Department of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, United Kingdom Rights-holder(s): Katie Prizeman Publication Year: 2025 Description: Anhedonia, a core symptom of depression, refers to the reduced interest or pleasure in experiences that are typically rewarding. It is considered a significant risk factor for future depressive episodes and is associated with social withdrawal, which can lead to loneliness—another risk factor for depression. The aim of this study was to examine how anhedonia and its subcomponents relate to depression and loneliness symptoms in young people over time. A total of 275 young people (ages 17–25, M = 20.50), with a range of depressive symptoms (assessed using the Mood and Feelings Questionnaire [MFQ]), were recruited from local schools and the student population through the School of Psychology research panel, online advertisements, and posters. Participants completed assessments on depressive symptoms, anhedonia, and loneliness at baseline and at a four-month follow-up. A total of 173 participants provided follow-up data. Multiple regression analyses were conducted to examine the relationships between anhedonia and its subcomponents, and depressive symptoms and loneliness, both cross-sectionally and longitudinally. Participants were reimbursed for their time and effort by being entered into a draw for a £50 Amazon voucher after completing the first survey. Participants who consented to participate in the follow-up phase were entered into a further draw for one of five £50 Amazon vouchers. A total of 103 participants could not be contacted for follow-up, had discontinued the study, or provided incomplete data. Our findings confirm the association between anhedonia and both depression and loneliness. We highlight the important role of anhedonia and its subcomponents in predicting both clinical depression and loneliness, supporting theoretical models that emphasize the centrality of anhedonia in these mental health outcomes. By using both cross-sectional and longitudinal data, we demonstrate that anhedonia’s impact on clinical depression and loneliness persists over time. Future research should continue to explore the nuanced role of anhedonia in youth mental health, particularly its differential impact across various subcomponent processes. Cite as: Prizeman, Katie (2025): Data supporting 'Anhedonia and its subcomponent processes predict symptoms of clinical depression and loneliness in young people'. University of Reading. Dataset. https://researchdata.reading.ac.uk/id/eprint/1400 Related publication: • Title: Anhedonia and its subcomponent processes predict symptoms of clinical depression and loneliness in young people • Corresponding author: Katie Prizeman • Co-authors: Ciara McCabe • Journal: British Journal of Clinical Psychology • Current status: Revision 1 • Expected date of publication: N/A Contact: Katie Prizeman katiediab@gmail.com Acknowledgements: Thank you to all the participants who took part in helping us collect data for this study. Your involvement was essential to the success of this research, and we greatly appreciate your support. 2. TERMS OF USE ------------ Copyright 2025 Katie Prizeman. This dataset is licenced under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. 3. PROJECT AND FUNDING INFORMATION ------------ Title: Mixed methods approach exploring the effect of mental health stigma on self-disclosure, loneliness, and social isolation in young people with depressive symptoms This project received no other funding. This dataset was not created in the course of a funded project. 4. CONTENTS ------------ File listing 1. Data_File_Prizeman_2025 Includes 1 excel file made up of 2 excel sheets: • Sheet 1 titled: T1 Data_N=275. Includes information about 275 participants socio-demographic characteristic information [i.e., participant number, age, country, education level, gender, and ethnicity,], and participates total questionnaire scores including the following scales: ASA, MFQ, and UCLA. • Sheet 2 titled: T2 Data_N=173. Includes 173 matched ID participants numbers (matched to baseline/T1), and participates total questionnaire scores including the following scales: ASA, MFQ, and UCLA at four month follow-up. 5. METHODS ----------- Participants included young people (N = 275) aged 17–25 years (M = 20.50), with a range of depressive symptoms, as measured by the Mood and Feelings Questionnaire (MFQ) (Costello & Angold, 1988). They were recruited from local schools and the student population via the School of Psychology research panel, online advertisements, and posters. Participants completed assessments on depressive symptoms, anhedonia, and loneliness at baseline and at a four-month follow-up. A total of 173 participants provided follow-up data. Participants were reimbursed for their time and effort by being entered into a draw for a £50 Amazon voucher after completing the first survey. Those who consented to take part in the follow-up phase were entered into a further draw for one of five £50 Amazon vouchers. A total of 103 participants could not be contacted for follow-up assessments, had discontinued the study, or provided incomplete data. We examined the relationships between anhedonia, loneliness, and depression using regression analyses. All procedures contributing to this work comply with the ethical standards of the relevant national and institutional committees on human experimentation and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2008. The study was approved by the Research Ethics Committee (REC reference number: 2022-072-NW) of the Psychology Department at the University of Reading, and written informed consent was obtained. Participants received a debrief form, which included contact details for the Samaritans and advised anyone concerned about their mood to contact their GP.