Poster #194 - Theory of Mind Moderated the Relation between Social Competence and Depression in Children

• In Event: 3-159 - Poster Session 12
  In Poster Session: PS 12 Section - Social Cognition

Integrative Statement

The current study evaluated whether the relation between social competence and depression varied as a function of children’s theory of mind. Social competence involves skills needed to forge positive interpersonal relationships (Rose & Krasnor, 1997). Lower levels of social competence are significantly associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms in youth (e.g., Blechman et al., 1986; Kennedy, Spence, & Hensley, 1989). Theory of mind (ToM) is the ability to understand and anticipate others’ social behavior by attributing mental states to them (Frith & Frith, 2006). Children with poor ToM tend to show worse social competence (Asington, 2003; Liddle & Nettle, 2006). The purpose of the current study was to examine the relations among social competence, ToM, and depressive symptoms and to test whether the link between social competence and depression varied by children’s theory of mind ability.
Participants were 123 children (46.3% female) ages 8- to 15-years-old (M=10.94, SD=1.89). To assess theory of mind, children completed the Strange Stories Task (Happe, 1994) that involved seven stories about social situations. Following each story, children were asked why the characters behaved the way they did; responses were coded based on the child’s use of mental states on a 1=no mental states to 3=multiple mental states, point scale. Parents completed the Center for Epidemiological Studies Scale for Children (CES-DC) about their child’s depressive symptoms and the Social Skills Subscale of the Social Skills Improvement System (SSIS; Gresham & Elliot, 2008) to assess their child’s social competence.
First, we conducted analyses of the bivariate correlations among children’s social competence, ToM, and depressive symptoms. Depression was significantly negatively correlated with social competence (r=-.47, p<.001). The correlations of ToM with depression (r=.17, p=.076) and with social competence (r=.18, p=.109) were not statistically significant. We next conducted a regression analysis to test whether the interaction of social competence and theory of mind predicted children’s depressive symptoms (Table 1), controlling for age [age and ToM correlated significantly (r=.38, p<.001)]. The interaction of social competence and ToM was significant (Figure 1). Among children with high social competence, the relation between theory of mind and depressive symptoms was not significant. In contrast, among children with low (i.e., poor) social competence, higher (i.e., better) theory of mind was significantly associated with higher levels of depressive symptoms.
The present study found that the association between social competence and depression varied by children’s theory of mind ability. Among less socially competent children, higher ToM was associated with higher depressive symptoms. Perhaps children who were more aware of others’ perspectives, but also less socially adept, were more inclined to interpret others’ behaviors as rejecting of them, resulting in more distress. This suggests that interventions aimed at preventing depression in children should not only aim to improve social skills, but also should assess ToM and children’s accompanying interpretations about the meaning of their peers’ behaviors toward them. Future studies should assess the longitudinal relations among social competence, theory of mind, and depression and track the developmental trajectory of these constructs in relation to each other.

Authors

• Kelsey Clayback, Vanderbilt University
  Presenting Author

• Haley Green, Vanderbilt University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Kurstyn Morley, Vanderbilt University
  Non-Presenting Author

• Judy Garber, Vanderbilt University
  Non-Presenting Author