Final answer:
Powerful predictors of depression include a combination of genetics and environmental factors, which are more predictive than socioeconomic status, age and gender, or physical health conditions alone. Studies demonstrate that emotional states, when combined, form a psychological risk factor that strongly predicts health outcomes, including heart disease.
Step-by-step explanation:
The most powerful predictors of the onset of a depressive episode are indeed multifaceted. According to the biopsychosocial approach, rather than just a single factor, it encompasses a complex interplay of genetics and environmental factors, alongside psychological risk factors such as depression, anxiety, hostility, and trait anger, which have been indicated to predict the onset of heart disease and possibly other health complications.
For instance, a longitudinal investigation of Vietnam War veterans demonstrated that negative emotional states like depression and anxiety predicted heart disease. However, when these attributes were combined into a single psychological risk factor, they were more strongly associated with health outcomes than any individual factor. This highlights the need for combined assessment of psychological risks. Moreover, studies have shown that life stressors and personality traits such as neuroticism may contribute to both depression and adverse physical health conditions. Adolescent depression in particular has been linked to behaviors that pose cardiovascular risk in later life.
Answering the student's question directly, the most powerful predictors of the onset of a depressive episode, based on research, are genetics and environmental factors (option a). Socioeconomic status, age and gender, and physical health conditions can also be contributing factors; however, they are not considered as powerful as the genetic and environmental contributions.