Forms of peer victimization in adolescence: Covariation with symptoms of depression.

Abstract

Peer victimization is a common concern in adolescence that includes both relational (e.g., exclusion, rumor spreading) and overt (e.g., hitting, threatening) forms (Crick & Bigbee, 1998). Relational and overt peer victimization have shown to be differentially associated with depressive symptoms, with relational peer victimization showing a stronger association to depressive symptoms than overt peer victimization (Casper & Card, 2017). The current study uses an accelerated longitudinal research design to investigate: (a) how relational and overt peer victimization and depressive symptoms change over an accelerated age period from 11.1 to 16.8 years (centered at 12.5 years), and (b) concurrent and prospective associations of relational and overt peer victimization with depressive symptoms. Gender differences are investigated. Participants included 1,434 adolescents in grades 7 to 9 (53.5% girls; M age = 13.5 years, SD = .9) who were assessed over 2 school years. Adolescents were from diverse ethnic groups (45% racialized groups) and from low-to middle-income households. Adolescents reported the frequency of their experiences of relational and overt peer victimization (Crick & Grotpeter, 1996) and depressive symptoms (Bevans et al., 2012) in the fall and spring of each school year. Both forms of peer victimization and depressive symptoms increased from age 12.5 to age 14 before decreasing by age 16.8 years. Frequency of relational peer victimization at age 12.5 was related to depressive symptoms at age 16.8. Frequency of depressive symptoms at age 12.5 predicted change in both forms of peer victimization at age 16.8. Some gender differences were observed.

Longitudinal associations between changes in peer victimization and emotion dysregulation across adolescence.

“…This finding is not necessarily surprising considering that compared to childhood, adolescents are less likely to use this form of PV, compared to other forms (e.g., relational victimization; Casper & Card, 2017; Ettekal & Ladd, 2017). Yet, a recent study assessing change in PV across adolescence demonstrated an increasing trend in overt victimization from Age 12.5 to 14, where it peaked and then began decreasing through Age 16 (Cho et al, 2022). In the present study, the sample was an average age of 14 at Time 1 and thus levels of overt victimization may have stabilized by that point.…”