The models assumed that maternal depression is unrelated to maternal reporting behavior; maternal depression causally influences maternal reporting accuracy; and maternal depression correlates with reporting accuracy. These models were fitted to data on maternal depression and multiple-informant (mother, teacher, child) reports of conduct disorder and attention deficit behaviors for a cohort of 12- and 13-year-old New Zealand children. The results of model fitting suggest small to moderate correlations between maternal depression and maternal reporting errors, showing a tendency for maternal depression to be associated with a mother's exaggeration of child behavioral problems; however, independent of any effects of maternal depression on maternal reporting errors, there was evidence of small but significant associations between maternal depression and child conduct disorder and attention deficit behaviors. 5 tables and 53 references