Frequent peer problems in Australian children and adolescents

Abstract

Purpose – Whilst overt bullying has received considerable attention for its negative impact on the emotional well-being of children and adolescents, peer problems such as excessive teasing and social exclusion have received less consideration. The purpose of this paper is to examine the prevalence, demographic, and clinical correlates of frequent peer problems in children and adolescents who participated in the Australian National Survey of Mental Health and Well-Being. Design/methodology/approach – Participants were a nationally representative sample of 2,107 children (aged 6-12 years), and 1,490 adolescents (aged 13-17 years). Frequent peer problems (excessive teasing or social exclusion) were measured by parental report for children, and self and parental report for adolescents. Associations with a number of mental health problems were examined, including being in the clinical range for internalising and externalising symptoms, having major depressive disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or conduct disorder, low self-esteem, experiencing suicidal ideation and behaviour, or using marijuana and alcohol. Findings – One in 30 children and one in 20 adolescents experienced frequent peer problems. Parents less commonly identified frequent peer problems than were self-reported by their adolescent children. Frequent peer problems were strongly associated with all mental health problems except alcohol and marijuana use. Originality/value – Frequent peer problems are associated with a greatly increased risk of mental health problems. Identifying those children and adolescents with frequent peer problems provides opportunity for assessment and intervention of emotional and behavioural problems.

Mental health problems and associated school interpersonal relationships among adolescents in China: a cross-sectional study

“…Further studies will be needed to focus on the association between teacher-student relationship and mental health problems among adolescents. This result is consistent with some previous studies, which indicated that peer problems can affect the emotional well-being of adolescents [55,56]. It has been shown that the psychological and behavioral characteristics of adolescents, such as externalizing and internalizing problems, were affected by their peers [57][58][59].…”

Early predictors of escalating internalizing problems across middle childhood.

“…Girls also appeared to be more prone to internalizing problems compared with boys. These risk factors are likely to co-occur in many children (Denham et al, 2016; Gjerde et al, 2017) and also place children at risk of a number of other negative outcomes not confined to internalizing problems. As such, practitioners are encouraged to utilize the information holistically and consider the possibilities of co-occurrence of several risk factors.…”

The Queensland Twin Adolescent Brain Project, a longitudinal study of adolescent brain development

“…In addition, Social Support and Family Functioning was assessed with the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) 57 , which captures support from family, friends, and significant other 80 and two scales answered by the parent -the Alabama Parenting Questionnaire (APQ) 58 to capture parenting style and the McMaster Family Assessment Device (FAD) 59 , which provides both dimensional and overall measures of family functioning 81 . Peer influences and family factors are posited to influence adolescent brain development [82][83][84] and moderate adolescent risk of experiencing mental health problems [85][86][87][88] .…”

“…In addition, Social Support and Family Functioning was assessed with the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) 60 , which captures support from family, friends, and significant other 83 and two scales answered by the parent -the Alabama Parenting Questionnaire (APQ) 61 to capture parenting style and the McMaster Family Assessment Device (FAD) 62 , which provides both dimensional and overall measures of family functioning 84 . Peer influences and family factors are posited to influence adolescent brain development [85][86][87] and moderate adolescent risk of experiencing mental health problems [88][89][90][91] . 54 × × Australian-adapted Hierarchical Personality Inventory for Children (HiPIC-A) 55 × Autism Spectrum Quotient -10 items (AQ-10) (Adolescent) 56 × Children's Response Styles Questionnaire -rumination subscale (CRSQ) 57 × × Children's Attributional Style Questionnaire -Revised (CASQ-R) 58 × × Early Adolescent Temperament Questionnaire -Revised (EATQ-R) 59 × × Social Support and Family Functioning Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS) 60 × × Alabama Parenting Questionnaire (APQ; Parental Monitoring session 1 only) 61 × × McMaster Family Assessment Device (FAD) 62 × ×…”