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Symposia

Child / Adolescent - Anxiety

Session: Impact of Peer Victimization in Youth and Directions for Intervention: A New Look At An Old Problem

2 - (SYM 14) Peer Victimization, Depressive Symptoms, and Theory of Mind: A Comparison of Self-, Informant-, and Interview-rated Experiences

Friday, November 17, 2023
10:30 AM – 12:00 PM PST
Location: Cowlitz (502), Level 5

Background: Peer victimization has been identified as a global public health crisis given its detrimental effects on adolescent mental health. The current study aims to advance our understanding of this association in two novel ways. First, we examined how different forms of measurement (e.g., self-, informant-, and interview-based assessments) impact the association between peer victimization and depressive symptoms. Second, we examined how the everyday skill of imputing mental states—“theory of mind”—may be a risk factor for depressive symptoms in the face of peer victimization.

Method: Participants were 143 adolescents 12 to 18 years old (51.7% girls; 81.8% non-Hispanic White). Self- and parent-reports of peer victimization frequency was assessed using the Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire. Further, contextual ratings of victimization frequency and severity were derived from the Childhood Experience of Care and Abuse. Adolescent depressive symptoms were assessed using the Children’s Depressive Inventory, self- and parent-report. Theory of mind was assessed using the Reading the Mind in the Eyes task. Structural equation modelling was used to assess the relation between each measure of peer victimization, theory of mind, and depressive symptoms.

Results: Interview-based measures of victimization severity was the only significant predictor of child-reported depressive symptoms, β = .30, p = .006. However, this effect was qualified by a significant victimization severity by theory of mind interaction, β = -.64, p < .001. Follow-up analyses revealed that more severe victimization was associated with greater depressive symptoms, but only among participants with above average theory of mind skills. In contrast, parent-reported victimization frequency was the only significant predictor of parent-reported depressive symptoms, β = .33, p < .001.

Discussion: The findings highlight potential informant-biases that may compromise research on the consequences of peer victimization. However, contextual ratings of peer victimization suggest that victimization severity, rather than frequency, is the most robust predictor of depressive symptoms. Further, results suggest that strong theory of mind skills may be a risk factor for depressive symptoms in the face of peer victimization. These findings highlight the importance of assessing victimization severity and suggest that individuals with strong theory of mind skills may benefit from targeted interventions that help to reduce the detrimental impact of peer victimization.