Children’s Coping with In Vivo Peer Rejection: An Experimental Investigation

Abstract

We examined children's behavioral coping in response to an in vivo peer rejection manipulation. Participants (N = 186) ranging between 10 and 13 years of age, played a computer game based on the television show Survivor and were randomized to either peer rejection (i.e., being voted out of the game) or non-rejection control. During a five-min. post-feedback waiting period children's use of several behavioral coping strategies was assessed. Rejection elicited a marked shift toward more negative affect, but higher levels of perceived social competence attenuated the negative mood shift. Children higher in depressive symptoms were more likely to engage in passive and avoidant coping behavior. Types of coping were largely unaffected by gender and perceived social competence. Implications are discussed. Keywords

Explaining the Paradoxical Rejection-Aggression Link: The Mediating Effects of Hostile Intent Attributions, Anger, and Decreases in State Self-Esteem on Peer Rejection-Induced Aggression in Youth

“…Research has shown that these debriefing procedures are effective for early adolescents (Hurley & Underwood, 2002). Previous work has shown that participants are positive about participation in Survivor and report no objections about the deception or the procedures (e.g., Reijntjes, Stegge, Meerum Terwogt, Kamphuis, & Telch, 2006). During the debriefing, no participant expressed suspicion about the study, and no participant guessed what the study was about when explicitly asked.…”

Relation of Depression and Anxiety to Self‐ and Peer‐Reported Relational Aggression

“…Peer relationships are sources of support and intimacy, and they can provide developmental stability throughout school and into adulthood. Problems, such as social anxiety, loneliness, depression, low self-esteem, and negative school attitudes, are expected to be the most common forms of maladjustment associated with problematic peer relationships, and these links have been supported in many cross-sectional [e.g., Boivin et al, 1994;Crick and Ladd, 1993;Lopez and DuBois, 2005;Oldehinkel et al, 2007;Reijntjes et al, 2006] and longitudinal studies [e.g., Borelli and Prinstein, 2006;Coie et al, 1992;MacPhee and Andrews, 2006;Murray-Close et al, 2007;Woodward and Fergusson, 1999]. However, most of these studies have only focused on single aspects of peer relationships, such as focusing on correlations of being disliked by peers at school or being victimized by peers with negative affect and low self-worth.…”

Children’s Feedback Preferences in Response to an Experimentally Manipulated Peer Evaluation Outcome: The Role of Depressive Symptoms

“…During the debriefing, the child was informed that the judges, the co-players and the received feedback were entirely fictitious and that this deception was a necessary part of the procedure. At this point it should be noted that in our previous work, more than 100 participants were assigned to receive Survivor-administered peer rejection feedback (Reijntjes et al., 2006), including children with elevated depressive symptoms. Interviews with all participants, both immediately post-feedback as well as at one-week follow-up, indicated that the peer failure experience was not too emotionally upsetting.…”