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

• Published in: Journal of abnormal child psychology Vol. 51; no. 3; pp. 369 - 382
• Main Authors: Schwartz, David, Ryjova, Yana, Luo, Tana, Malamut, Sarah T, Zhang, Minci, Taylor, Leslie M, Omary, Adam
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Springer Nature B.V 01-03-2023
• Subjects: Adjustment; Adolescent; Adolescent girls; Adolescents; Bullying; Crime Victims - psychology; Depression; Female; Friendship; Humans; Interpersonal Relations; Male; Mental depression; Nominations; Partnerships; Peer relationships; Peers; Prospective Studies; Psychosocial factors; Rejection (Psychology); Self report; Social Adjustment; Social rejection; Victimization; Problem-talk; Friendship; Depression; Peer victimization
• ISSN: 2730-7166; 2730-7174
• DOI: 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.