Linking Social Anxiety and Adolescent Romantic Relationship Functioning: Indirect Effects and the Importance of Peers

Abstract

Peer relationships undergo dramatic shifts in form and function during adolescence, at the same time the incidence of socially evaluative fears sharply rises. Despite well-established links between social anxiety and broader interpersonal functioning, there is a dearth of research evaluating the impact of social anxiety on functioning in close relationships during this developmental stage. The present study examines the impact of social anxiety on functioning in close friendships and romantic relationships during adolescence. From a developmental psychopathology perspective, it was expected that social anxiety would influence functioning (quality, length, satisfaction) in romantic relationships through its influence on functioning in same- and other-sex friendships. Participants included 314 adolescents (60.5% female, 14-19 years of age) with a prior or current history of romantic relationship involvement. Structural equation modeling was used to test a mediation model positing an indirect pathway from social anxiety to romantic relationship functioning through functioning in close same- and other-sex friendships. Given known gender differences in social anxiety and relationship functioning, gender also was explored as a potential moderator. Results supported the hypothesized indirect pathway whereby social anxiety was associated with impairment in same-sex friendships; functioning in same-sex friendships was associated with functioning in other-sex friendships, which was associated, in turn, with functioning in romantic relationships. While the hypothesized indirect pathway was significant among both boys and girls, there was greater continuity of functioning between same- and other-sex friendships for girls. These findings highlight the importance of examining the multiple downstream effects of social anxiety on perceived social functioning in adolescence, and suggest that continuity may exist for maladaptive patterns of socialization, particularly across developmentally salient close relationships.

Psychometric Properties of the Chinese Version of the Fear of Negative Evaluation Scale-Brief (BFNE) and the BFNE-Straightforward for Middle School Students

“…Adolescence is an important stage in one’s physical, psychological and social development. Because of the increase in the frequency and importance of peer interactions, adolescents are vulnerable to SAD and fear evaluation [ 13 ]. Empirical studies in various cultural contexts have shown that the correlation coefficients between the scores of the BFNE and SAD assessed by different instruments are always high [ 14 – 16 ].…”

The Importance of Perceived Care and Connectedness with Friends and Parents for Adolescent Social Anxiety

“…These symptoms tend to make socially anxious individuals particularly conspicuous in social settings and not very popular with other people. Indeed, studies on normative adolescent samples have shown that higher levels of social anxiety are associated with lower peer acceptance (Erath, Flanagan, Bierman, & Tu, ; Flanagan, Erath, & Bierman, ; La Greca & Harrison, ; La Greca & Lopez, ) as well as increased peer victimization (Siegel, La Greca, & Harrison, ; Storch, Brassard, & Masia‐Warner, ), impairment in romantic relationships (Hebert, Fales, Nangle, Papadakis, & Grover, ), high levels of loneliness (Stoeckli, ), and poorer relationships with parents (Van Zalk & Kerr, ). Nonetheless, even though social anxiety is typically seen as a stable trait (Hayward et al., ), the experience and the consequences of social anxiety can vary from one individual to another.…”

Descrição cronológica das manifestações amorosas de adolescentes do sul do Brasil

“…These results highlight the importance of the friend's network in the construction of romantic relationships in adolescence since adolescents seem to use this network as an environment conducive to their first romantic interactions. In this way, the idea conveyed in the international literature regarding the facilitating role of the peer group in romantic involvement, by enabling socialization in the romantic role and promoting behaviors and thoughts in this context, is confirmed (Hebert et al, 2013).…”

“…According to Hebert, Fales, Nangle, Papadakis, & Grover (2013), in the relationships of friendship, the adolescents find a space in which they can develop the social skills necessary for success in other contexts with peers, such as romantic relationships.…”