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Depressive mood in C hinese early adolescents: Relations with shyness, self‐esteem and perceived social support
Author(s) -
Chan Siu Mui
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
asia‐pacific psychiatry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.654
H-Index - 21
eISSN - 1758-5872
pISSN - 1758-5864
DOI - 10.1111/j.1758-5872.2012.00179.x
Subject(s) - shyness , psychology , self esteem , mediation , social support , mood , clinical psychology , depressive mood , depression (economics) , population , developmental psychology , anxiety , psychiatry , social psychology , medicine , environmental health , political science , law , economics , macroeconomics
While depression affects adolescents' psychological functioning and adjustment, studies of H ong K ong adolescents show that more than 20% of this population suffer from depressive symptoms. Methods A cross‐sectional study was performed to examine how depressive mood was related to shyness, self‐esteem and social support in a sample of 326 early C hinese adolescents. Data were collected using self‐report questionnaires. Participants completed the C hildren D epression Inventory ( CDI ), C hildren's S hyness Q uestionnaire ( CSQ ), R osenberg's S elf‐esteem S cale and five items measuring perceived social support. Results Based on the CDI cut‐off point (≥20) adopted in the W est ( K ovacs), 20.9% of the sample was classified as having depressive symptoms, a percentage that was double that reported in W estern studies. Regression analyses results showed that shyness predicted depressive mood in the positive direction and self‐esteem and perceived social support in the negative direction. Furthermore, a mediation model was established in which the effects of shyness on depressive mood were mediated by self‐esteem and social support. Discussion Professionals should offer age‐appropriate social skill training to shy adolescents who have low self‐esteem and poor peer relationship.