1. Introduction Results Methods Conclusions
Deep Dyadic Friendships vs. Broad Peer Preference During Adolescence as Predictors of Adolescent and Adult Internalizing Symptoms Rachel K. Narr & Joseph P. Allen University of Virginia. We would like to thank the National Institute of Child Health & Human Development for funding awarded to Joseph P. Allen, Principal Investigator, (9 R01 HD A11) for funding to conduct this study as well as for the write-up of this study.
Introduction
Procedures .
Time 1 (Age 15)
Target teens and their best friends filled out questionnaires about the teen’s self image, internalizing symptoms, and relationships.
Times 2 & 3 (Ages 16 and 25)
Target teens filled out questionnaires about themselves and their mental health.
Measures
Dyadic Friendship Depth
Depth of close friendship between teens and their best friends at age 15 was assessed using two questionnaires filled out by the teen’s closest friend. These assessed things such as trust, communication, attachment, and overall perceived closeness.
Broad Peer Preference
Broad peer preference (i.e. sociometric popularity) was measured using a limited nomination sociometric scale given to all participants. Teens nominated other people as people they would most/least like to spend time with, and scales including a given teen were average to create an overall score for how “liked” the teen was.
Internalizing Symptoms
Symptoms of depression were assessed during adolescence by the Child Depression Inventory, and during adulthood by the Beck Depression Inventory
Self-worth was assessed at all ages using the Self-Worth subscale of the Harter Self-Perception Profile
Social competence was assessed during adolescence using the Social Acceptance subscale of the Harter Self-Perception Profile
Social anxiety symptoms were assessed in adulthood with the Social Anxiety Scale
Table 1 – Predictions of Internalizing Symptoms (β’s)
Premises
Adolescence is a unique time wherein family relationships gradually decrease in importance, and peer relationships become primary sources of support and intimacy.
There are numerous types of peer relations, with two important ones being broad peer preference (e.g., popularity) and deep dyadic friendships.
Given the distinct attributes of each type of relationship, it is unlikely that each functions in the same ways, or that teens who are successful in one domain will also be successful in others
Previous work has found dyadic closeness to be related to better concurrent psychosocial health, higher levels of happiness, and a more robust stress response. Broad peer preference has been linked to concurrent leadership, assertiveness, and prosocial behaviors as well as minor delinquency. However, there is less known about how these compare in predicting mental health in the short- or long-term.
Hypotheses
1. Broad peer preference and the depth of the teen’s friendship with their closest friend during middle adolescence will each uniquely predict relative decreases in depression, increases in self-worth, and increases in perceptions of social acceptance within mid-adolescence, with close friendship depth as the stronger predictor.
2. Close friendship depth during middle adolescence will predict a process of increasing mental health into adulthood, while broad peer preference will not.
Close Friendship Depth at Age 15
Outcomes
Age 16
Age 25
Depressive Symptoms
-.06
-.54**
Self-Worth
.34***
.39***
Social Acceptance (age 16) and Social Anxiety (age 25)
.23**
-.40***
Broad Peer Preference at Age 15
.07
.08
-.04
-.02
-.12
.32***
Note. *** p < ** p < * p < .05. β’s are from final models. Only predictors of interest shown here. Full models controlled for gender, income, and baseline predictors of outcomes of interest.
Due to slightly differing measures, positive scores on social acceptance at age 16 are considered desirable, while negative scores on social anxiety are desirable at age 25.
Results
Methods
Conclusions
Analyses reveal that close friendship depth at age 15 predicts positive relative changes in self-worth (p<.001) and feeling socially accepted (p<.01) from age 15 to age 16, and predicts even stronger positive changes in self-worth (p<.001), social acceptance (p<.001), and depressive symptoms (p<.01) from age 15 to age 25.
Peer preference was not predictive of relative changes in depression or self-worth either proximally or distally, but did predict higher social anxiety (p<.001) at age 25.
Although we considered many interim-year measures as possible mediators of these relations (e.g., adult friendship depth, romantic relationship quality, warmth during interaction tasks, leadership/followership, adult attachment), none were found to act as mediators.
These results indicate that depth of close friendship during middle adolescence can be an important predictor of concurrent and especially future mental health.
High quality close friendships may have both protective and promotional functions for teens during and beyond middle adolescence.
Despite some concurrent benefits of broad peer preference, seeking peer preference during middle adolescence rather than developing deeper close peer connections may be detrimental.
Future Directions
Continue to explore possible mechanisms through which close peer relationships and broad peer preference may have impact or predict adult mental health.
Participants
Multi-method longitudinal data were obtained from 169 teenagers part of a larger sample of 184 teenagers (86 male, 98 female) along with their self-identified best friends.
58% Caucasian, 29% African American, and 13% Mixed or Other ethnicity.
Mean household income was $43,471 (range $2,500 to $70,000+).
Target teen age was 15 years at Time 1, 16 years at Time 2, and 25 years at Time 3 .
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