Longitudinal Examination of Observed Family Hostility and Adolescent Anxiety and Depression as Mediated by Adolescent Perspective Taking and Empathic Concern
Year: 2016
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: The purpose of this longitudinal study was to examine hostility in family interaction and its impact on adolescent depression and anxiety with adolescent perspective taking and empathic concern as mediators. Gender differences were also examined. Adolescents were from 353 two-parent families in a large north-western city in the United States and on average were 13.25 years old (SD=1.01) for girls and 13.30 years (SD=.99) for boys at the beginning of the study. This study utilized data from waves 3-5. Earlier waves of data were not used because some of the measures were not available for earlier waves. Results indicated that higher levels of hostility in family interaction were directly related to higher anxiety in boys and girls and higher depression in girls two years later. Hostility in family interaction was not related to adolescent perspective taking, and adolescent perspective taking was not significantly related to anxiety for boys or girls, but it was negatively related to depression at time 5 for girls only. Adolescent empathic concern significantly mediated the relationship between observed hostility in family interaction and adolescent depression and adolescent anxiety for girls but not for boys. Implications for future research and clinical practice are discussed.
Author: Trevor Dennis Dahle
Institution: Brigham Young University
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W2546027405