Citation

Vaillancourt T, Brittain H. Front. Child Adolesc. Psychiatry 2024; 3: e1411304.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2024, Frontiers Media)

DOI

10.3389/frcha.2024.1411304

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Some targets of relational peer victimization become depressed because of their poor treatment. These associations are well documented in youth but are rarely studied in adults. We examined the longitudinal pathways between relational peer victimization (being excluded, stonewalled, etc.) and symptoms of depression in a sample of 392 young adults from Ontario, Canada using annual assessments from age 19 to 24. The role of the COVID-19 pandemic was also examined. Latent curve models with structured residuals indicated that individuals who reported greater relational peer victimization than others also reported more symptoms of depression (between-person association) and those who were more relationally victimized than their expected level were more depressed than expected (within-person association). During the COVID-19 pandemic, the within-time association between relational peer victimization and depression symptoms was reduced. Specifically, accounting for between-person effects and prior individual differences, we found a predicted decoupling of relational peer victimization and depression symptoms in the first year of the pandemic when social non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) were heavily implemented in Ontario, but not the second year, when NPIs were relaxed (but not abandoned). Our findings indicate that the social NPIs implemented in the initial year of the pandemic may have inadvertently led to a positive impact on the association between depression symptoms and relational peer victimization. This finding underscores the importance of minimizing interactions with abusive peers whenever feasible as a strategy to enhance mental well-being.

Language: en

Keywords

COVID-193; depression symptoms2; longitudinal4; relational peer victimization1; young adults5. (Min.5-Max. 8