Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • Publication
    Adolescents׳ perceptions of peers with depression: An attributional analysis
    (Elsevier, 2014-08-30) ;
    Understanding adolescents׳ perceptions of peers with depression is vital in order to tackle peer exclusion and lessen stigmatization. To examine adolescents׳ perceptions of a hypothetical peer with depression, we test an attributional model: that stigma towards persons with mental disorders is influenced by attributions about the causes of their disorders and inferences of personal responsibility. Participants were 401 adolescents from 4th year/10th grade with an age range of 14.75–17.08 years (M=15.90 years; S.D.=0.403 years). Structural Equation Modeling was employed to assess the relationships among causal attributions (personal control), perceived responsibility, and emotional reactions, in predicting social acceptance/exclusion of a peer with depression. Results indicated that (a) if the peer with depression is perceived as having little control over the cause of depression, responsibility is not inferred, participants feel sympathy and pity, and are likely to socially accept the peer (b) gender of vignette character and participant influence these responses. This study builds on our theoretical understanding of why adolescents with depression may face social exclusion from peers by applying a well‐established theory in social psychology. Findings should be incorporated into the design of interventions aimed at reducing peer exclusion and stigmatization of adolescents with depression.
      569Scopus© Citations 20
  • Publication
    Labelling effects and adolescent responses to peers with depression: an experimental investigation
    (Springer, 2017-06-24) ;
    Background: The impact of illness labels on the stigma experiences of individuals with mental health problems is a matter of ongoing debate. Some argue that labels have a negative influence on judgments and should be avoided in favour of information emphasising the existence of a continuum of mental health/illness. Others believe that behavioral symptoms are more powerful influencers of stigma than labels. The phenomenon has received little attention in adolescent research, despite the critical importance of the peer group at this developmental stage. This study employs a novel experimental design to examine the impact of the depression label and continuum information on adolescents' responses to peers with depression. Methods: Participants were 156 adolescents, 76 male, 80 female (M = 16.25 years; SD = .361), assigned to one of three conditions (Control, Label, Continuum). Participants respond to four audio-visual vignette characters (two clinically depressed) on three occasions. Outcome measures included judgment of the mental health of the vignette characters and emotional responses to them. Results: Neither the provision of a depression label or continuum information influenced perceptions of the mental health of the characters in the audio-visual vignettes or participants' emotional responses to them. Conclusion: The findings have implications for the design of interventions to combat depression stigma with adolescents. Interventions should not necessarily target perceptions of psychiatric labels, but rather perceptions of symptomatic behaviour.
    Scopus© Citations 18  483