Social Adjustment of Problem-Talk Partners Moderates Associations Between Self-Perceived Victimization and Depressive Symptoms

: Schwartz David, Ryjova Yana, Luo Tana, Malamut Sarah T., Zhang Minci, Taylor Leslie M., Omary Adam

Publisher: SPRINGER

: 2023

: Research on Child and Adolescent Psychopathology

: RESEARCH ON CHILD AND ADOLESCENT PSYCHOPATHOLOGY

: RES CHILD ADOLES PSY

: 14

: 2730-7166

: 2730-7174

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-022-00992-4

: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10802-022-00992-4

This paper examines the moderating role of problem-talk partnerships with peers who are rejected, victimized, or unpopular on links between self-perceived victimization by peers and depressive symptoms. Problem-talk partnerships are friendships that involve frequent discussion of problems and personal struggles. 267 adolescents (152 girls; mean age of 14.4 years) participated in a short-term prospective study with identical measures administered in two annual waves. The adolescents completed a battery of self-report questionnaires assessing peer victimization and depression. They also completed a peer nomination inventory and identified friends with whom they frequently discuss problems. High levels of peer nominated victimization, social rejection, and unpopularity among problem-talk partners were linked to elevated associations between self-reported victimization and depressive symptoms. The effects for unpopularity levels among problem-talk partners were moderated by gender. Compared to boys, girls' adjustment was more strongly influenced by unpopularity among problem-talk partners. Conversely, friendships with peers who were not problem-talk partners did not have a consistent moderating role. The full pattern of findings highlights the need to consider the social adjustment of dyadic partners when examining the psychosocial impact of perceived victimization.