This paper uses a functionalist view of emotion to consider family factors that create risk for depressive symptoms in adolescents. Two adolescent siblings and their mothers were assessed for emotion regulation during autonomy-related communication tasks, whereas their mother's attachment- and intimacy-related functioning was assessed through interview and self-report. The results indicate that older teens' failure to establish autonomous stances during communication and their mothers' dissatisfaction with intimate relationships increase risk for teenagers reporting depressive symptoms. Further, mothers' preoccupation attachment-related issues was found to be associated with less autonomous communication from older teenagers. Implications of these findings and future directions for investigating the family factors associated with adolescent depression are discussed.