Poster #228 - Investigating Pathways from Children’s Depressive Symptoms to Peer Relationships: The Role of Teacher Support

• In Event: 2-163 - Poster Session 08
  In Poster Session: PS 08 Section - Social Relationships

Integrative Statement

Depression creates disturbances in children’s peer relations (e.g., Rudolph, 2009). An important research objective, therefore, is to delineate factors that reduce the link between depression and adverse peer relations. Because children spend much of each day in school, teachers are key socializers of children’s social development (Hughes, 2012) and have the potential to function as “developmental assets” by altering the trajectories of at-risk children (Sobel & Pianta, 2012; p. 218). This knowledge lays the groundwork for research that explicates the adaptive significance of teacher support for the peer relations of depressed children. Study aims were to evaluate: (1) depressive symptoms and teacher support as unique predictors of subsequent peer victimization, peer exclusion, peer acceptance, and popularity six months later, and (2) the interaction of depressive symptoms and teacher support in the fall as a predictor of peer relationships in the spring.

Participants included 230 (Mage = 9.48, SD = 0.68) 3rd – 5th graders from thirteen classrooms housed within two elementary schools in a metropolitan area of the Southeastern US. Participants reported on their depressive symptoms (Short Mood and Feelings Questionnaire; Angold et al., 1995) and perceptions of teacher support (adapted Classroom Life Measure; Johnson et al., 1985) in the fall. In the spring, teachers completed measures of peer victimization (Ladd & Kochenderfer-Ladd, 2002) and peer exclusion (Child Behavior Scale; Ladd et al., 2009), and we collected peer reports of peer acceptance and popularity (Coie et al., 1982).

Results provide evidence for a main effect of depression on each peer relationship criterion such that elevated levels of depression were associated with higher levels of victimization (B = .022, SE = .008, p = .009) and exclusion (B = .010, SE = .004, p = .031) and lower levels of acceptance (B = -.006, SE = .003, p = .026) and popularity (B = -.008, SE = .004, p = .050). The interaction effects of depression and teacher support on victimization (B = -.024, t = -2.813, p = .005), and depression and teacher support on exclusion (B = -.015, t = -3.358, p = .001), were also significant.

For victimization, simple slope analysis for 1 SD below the mean (i.e., low levels of teacher support) was significant (B = .040, SE = .009, t = 4.390, p = .000); however, the simple slope for 1 SD above the mean (i.e., high levels of teacher support) was not (B = .003, SE = .012, t = .251, p = .802). Similarly, for exclusion, the simple slope for 1 SD below the mean was significant (B = .021, SE = .005, t = 4.388, p = .000) whereas the simple slope for 1 SD above the mean was nonsignificant (B = -.002, SE = .006, t = -.374, p = .709). (Figures 1 and 2).

Results provide evidence for the buffering role of teacher support. Specifically, they show that depressive symptoms in the fall forecast victimization and exclusion in the spring but only for children who perceive low levels of teacher support.

Authors

• Karen P. Kochel, University of Richmond
  Presenting Author

• Mariah Maki, University of Richmond
  Non-Presenting Author