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Prospective associations between peer functioning and social anxiety in adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: During adolescence, peer relationships take precedence and there is a normative increase in social anxiety. Although prospective studies have suggested peer functioning and social anxiety can influence each other, their findings have not been examined systematically. We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies to examine the bidirectional relationship between peer functioning and social anxiety in adolescence. METHODS: EMBASE, PsycINFO, Medline, and PubMed were searched to identify relevant articles. Meta-analysis was conducted to examine the mean effect sizes of prospective associations between social anxiety and four dimensions of peer functioning. Moderator analysis was performed, with age, gender, time interval between baseline and follow-up assessment, and publication year as moderators. RESULTS: Meta-analyses of 23 studies showed that friendship quality (r =-.11), peer rejection (r =-.06), and peer victimization (r =.23) were each associated with later social anxiety, but peer acceptance was not (r =-.11). Social anxiety at baseline was associated with prospective levels of friendship quality (r =-.11), peer rejection (r=.09), and peer victimization (r =.17), but not peer acceptance (r =-.14). Age moderated the association between friendship quality and prospective social anxiety. Other moderator effects were statistically non-significant. LIMITATIONS: Limitations include different classifications of peer functioning, the use of self-report measures, heterogeneity between studies, and underrepresentation of clinical samples. CONCLUSIONS: A significant bidirectional association was found with social anxiety across three dimensions of peer functioning. Psychological prevention and intervention targeting peer functioning and social anxiety are indicated.
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“causing significant and persistent impairments in various life domains (e.g., Acquah et al., 2015; Chiu et al., 2021; Hebert et al., 2012; Soohinda & Sampath, 2016).”
From Psychological inflexibility explains social anxiety over time: a mediation analyses with a clinical adolescent sample (2024) · cites this paper as Chiu et al., 2021
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Metadata
- Authors
- Chiu, K., Clark, D. M., & Leigh, E.
- Affiliations
- King's College London (GB)
- University of Oxford (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Leigh, Eleanor
- Venue
- Journal of Affective Disorders
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2021-01
- Volume
- 279
- Pages
- 650-661
- ISSN
- 0165-0327 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC7758784
- OpenAlex
- W3095027428
- Cited by
- 155
- References
- 97
- Citations by year
- 2026: 40 · 2025: 38 · 2024: 26 · 2023: 26 · 2022: 17 · 2021: 8
- FWCI
- 1.01
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- hybrid
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Journal of Affective Disorders (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Research Portal (King's College London) (publishedVersion, other-oa)
- UEA Digital Repository (University of East Anglia) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- King's College London
- Wellcome Trust (102176/Z/13/Z, WT069777)
- National Institute for Health and Care Research (NF-SI-0512-10132)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Anxiety, Depression, Psychometrics, Treatment, Cognitive Processes
- Keywords
- social anxiety, peer functioning, adolescents, friendship quality, peer rejection, peer victimization, peer acceptance, bidirectional relationship, prospective associations, age moderation
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Anxiety, Humans, Peer Group, Prospective Studies, Crime Victims, Bullying
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