ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between specific symptoms of depression and particular styles of peer difficulties. Participants were 1687 students in fourth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth, and eleventh grades from a midsized Midwestern city. Based on previous studies, it was hypothesized that rejected and neglected youths would report greater depressive symptomatology than other peers. In addition, aggressive-rejected youth were predicted to report more Interpersonal Problems while submissive-rejected youths were expected to report more Anhedonia. There were no sociometric group differences on global scores of depression as measured by the Children's Depression Inventory; however, the aggressive- and submissive-rejected youths did report specific differences. Aggressive-rejected youths reported more Interpersonal Problems and feelings of Ineffectiveness, while the neglected and submissive-rejected youths reported more Anhedonia. Taken together, such differences provide support for differentiating among types of rejected students and suggest that different interventions may be necessary to address the needs of these youths.
Subject(s)
Depressive Disorder/diagnosis , Interpersonal Relations , Peer Group , Adolescent , Age Factors , Analysis of Variance , Child , Depressive Disorder/epidemiology , Female , Humans , Male , Personality Inventory/statistics & numerical data , Psychology, Adolescent , Psychology, Child , Rejection, Psychology , Sex Factors , Social Adjustment , Sociometric TechniquesABSTRACT
Examined the relation between sociometric nominations and social anxiety in adolescence. Participants were 973 students (473 boys and 500 girls) in Grades 6, 7, 8, and 9. Students completed the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents and a sociometric nomination task that included the following behavioral descriptors: liked most, liked least, starts fights the most, best sense of humor, class leader, easiest to push around, and most cooperative. Sociometric nominations were used to classify students into standard sociometric status groups (i.e., popular, average, rejected, neglected, and controversial) as well as into rejected subgroups (aggressive rejected and submissive rejected). Results indicated that students classified as rejected and neglected reported more social anxiety than those classified as average, popular, or controversial. In addition, submissive rejected students reported significantly more social anxiety than did aggressive rejected or average students. Implications of these results for assessment and treatment of adolescents with peer problems are discussed.
