A moderated mediation model of changes in adolescent social anxiety symptoms: The contribution of adolescents and their relationships with parents, peers, and teachers

Abstract

Multiple studies have identified several risk factors for social anxiety symptoms that span individual, familial, peer, and school contexts. Yet few studies have gone beyond the examinations of main effects to investigate the processes and interactions among multiple contexts with respect to changes in social anxiety symptoms. Utilizing a sample of 416 adolescents from two-parent families, the current study examined the contribution of multi-contextual interactions and processes to changes in social anxiety symptoms during early adolescence (6^th to 8^th grades). Differences between mother-adolescent and father-adolescent dyads were examined as well as adolescent gender differences.

Results indicated that mother-adolescent hostility during 6^th grade was associated with increases in adolescent social anxiety symptoms. Adolescent compliance to peers during 7^th grade fully mediated associations between mother-adolescent hostility and increases in adolescent social anxiety symptoms. In father-adolescent models, there was an indirect effect from father-adolescent hostility to increases in adolescent social anxiety symptoms through adolescent compliance to peers during 7 ^th grade. Important adolescent gender differences were found in these associations, and associations were unique to adolescent social anxiety symptoms while controlling for co-occurring adolescent depressive symptoms. Adolescent loneliness during 6^th grade was not significantly associated with changes in adolescent social anxiety symptoms, and associations were not moderated by teacher support or effective parent-adolescent conflict resolution. The results suggest that parent-adolescent interactions play an important role in increases in social anxiety symptoms both directly and through its effects on the methods that adolescents employ to engage with peers.