Self-perceived Social Acceptance Research Articles

The Social Experiences of Single Gay Fathers in Israel: An Intersectional Perspective.

Through an intersectional lens, this study explores the experience of being a single gay father by choice in Israeli society, which continues to view the traditional heterosexual two-parent family as the ideal. Analysis of 15 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with single gay Israeli fathers suggests that their experiences are characterized by constant tension between their self-perceived social acceptance and sense of belonging on the one hand and their encounters with discrimination and bias on the other. The findings shed light on the ways in which the fathers’ complex experiences are shaped by the intersection between their identity as parents and their two marginalized identities: single male parents and gay fathers. These identities were found to be highly contextual and affected by macro-level factors. As the fathers cope with their environment, they develop a sense of belonging alongside a deep sense of otherness, suggesting that the sense of belonging and the sense of otherness are not binary opposites, but rather two social categories that are continually constructed through the intersection between different identities and their interaction with macro-level factors, making single gay parenthood a multidimensional experience.

To disclose or not? Children’s tendency to disclose peer victimisation in elementary school

This study aimed to shed light on the prevalence of chronic peer victimisation among Dutch elementary school children and factors associated with (non-)disclosure of such experiences by victims. 5,961 students from 73 schools participated (51.5% male; M age = 9.96; 77.7% native Dutch). Results showed that 12.3% of all children were victimised chronically, of which 29.4% did not disclose. Multilevel logistic regressions indicated that girls, older and native Dutch children were more likely to disclose. Moreover, experiencing depressive symptoms prompts disclosing victimisation. Anxiety, high emotion regulation skills, and perceptions of cohesion in the classroom were negatively associated with disclosure. The disclosure was not related to frequency or duration of victimisation, self-perceived social acceptance, self-worth, impulse control, or perceived classroom climate. Our study reveals information on the prevalence of peer victimisation and its disclosure, based on a nationwide study conducted in 2016–2017. It gives important insights into factors associated with disclosing victimisation experiences.

Passive social networking site use and well-being: The mediating roles of social comparison and the fear of missing out

Passively browsing social networking sites (SNSs) correlates with poorer well-being (Verduyn, Ybarra, Résibois, Jonides, & Kross, 2017). However, less research has been conducted that fully examines what factors may mediate this association. In particular, both online social comparison and the fear of missing out (FoMO) may play roles in how passive SNS browsing relates to depressive symptoms and self-perceptions. The current study adds to the literature by investigating how passive use relates to these outcomes through social comparison and FoMO. For an ethnically diverse sample of college students (N = 717, Mage = 21.47, SDage = 4.64, 69% female), passively using SNSs positively predicted social comparison, which was positively related to FoMO, which in turn positively predicted depressive symptoms, and negatively predicted global self-worth, self-perceived physical appearance, and self-perceived social acceptance. These findings suggest that social comparison and FoMO play a role in the link between passive SNS use, depressive symptoms, and self-perceptions, and that FoMO could result from online social comparison.

Peer and self-reports of victimization and bullying: Their differential association with internalizing problems and social adjustment

Researchers typically employ either peer or self-reports to assess involvement in bullying. In this study, we examined the merits of each method for the identification of child characteristics related to victimization and bullying others. Accordingly, we investigated the difference between these two methods with regard to their relationship with social adjustment (i.e., perceived popularity, likeability, and self-perceived social acceptance) and internalizing problems (i.e., anxiety, depression, and self-worth) in 1192 Dutch school children, aged 9 to 12years. Perceived popularity and likeability were more strongly correlated with peer reports than self-reports, for both victimization and for bullying others. Self-perceived social acceptance correlated equally strong with peer and self- reports of victimization. Furthermore, peer reports of bullying were also correlated with self-perceived social acceptance, whereas self-reports of bullying were not. All internalizing problems showed stronger relations with self-reports than peer reports; although only the relation between self-reported victimization and internalizing problems was of practical significance. Despite our findings indicating that using only one type of report could be efficient for examining the relation between bullying behaviors and separate child characteristics, both types of report are necessary for a complete understanding of the personal and social well-being of the children involved.

Perceived Social Acceptance and Peer Status Differentially Predict Adjustment in Youth With and Without ADHD

Objective: This study extends previous research and examined if the longitudinal relation between self-perceived social acceptance and changes in adjustment was moderated by peer status and ADHD diagnosis. Method: A sample of children with ADHD and a normative comparison group (age 8-13 years) were assessed at baseline and one-year follow-up. Self-perceived social acceptance, peer status, and three areas of adjustment (depression symptoms, aggression/conduct problems, and social skills) were measured. Results: Moderation was found when predicting depression symptoms and aggression/conduct problems. Specifically, in children with ADHD only, higher perceived social acceptance protected against increases in depression symptoms for those with lower peer preference, but predicted greater aggression/conduct problems for those with higher peer preference. There was not evidence of significant moderation for predicting social skills; instead non-ADHD status, greater peer preference, and greater self-perceived social acceptance were each predictive of greater social skills. Conclusion: Results highlight the complex association between positive social self-perceptions and adjustment for children with ADHD and caution against a universal assumption that high self-perceptions are adaptive.

Self-concept and Ego Development in Deaf Adolescents: A Comparative Study

Self-concept and ego development, two intertwined aspects of self-indicating well-being and social-cognitive maturation, respectively, were examined in a representative sample of deaf adolescents of normal intelligence (N = 68), using translated and adapted versions of Harter's (1988, Manual for the self-perception profile for adolescents. Denver, CO: University of Denver) multidimensional measure of self-concept and Loevinger's (1998, Technical foundations for measuring ego development. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum) measure of ego development. Compared to hearing norm groups, deaf adolescents showed lower levels of self-perceived social acceptance, close friendships and ego development and higher physical appearance. Hierarchical multiple regression analyses controlling for sociodemographic variables showed positive associations of global self-worth with support for signing during childhood and quality of parent-child communication and of ego development with attending a regular school. Cluster analysis identified three social competence profiles: uniformly low competence, uniformly high competence, and low social acceptance with high physical appearance. Cluster membership was associated with school type, ego development, and (past) neurological disorder. The results are discussed in reference to interventions aimed at the well-being of deaf youth.

Primary School Children's Peer Relationships: Discrepancies in Self-Perceived Social Acceptance in Children with Emotional or Behavioral Disorders

This population-based study investigated self-perception of social acceptance in children with emotional or behavioral disorders, and whether their perceptions were in line with parent/teacher reports of peer relationship problems. Children with behavioral disorders (n = 145) emotional disorders (n = 118), and a comparison group (n = 4,344) were selected from an 11–13-years-old population (n = 5073). Children with emotional disorders reported poorer social acceptance than children with behavioral disorders, also when adjusted for parent/teacher ratings of peer problems, confirming the negative self-perception reported in previous clinical studies. Self-perceptions of children with behavioral disorders were lower than in the comparison group and not inflated according to parent/teacher reports. The results emphasize the importance of peer-relations in both disorder groups.

Self-Perceived Competence, Relational Victimization, and Children's Depressive Symptoms: Evidence for a Sex-Specific Vulnerability-Stress Model

The goal of the current multi-wave, longitudinal study was to test a cognitive vulnerability-stress model of depression in children by integrating Cole’s (1990) competency-based model with Beck’s (1983, 1987) event-congruency hypothesis. Focusing first on the main effects of children’s self-perceived competence, we found that low self-perceived social acceptance and scholastic competence were both associated with elevations in children’s depressive symptoms across the follow-up, though the effect was stronger for perceptions of social acceptance. Supporting a sex-specific vulnerability-stress model, low perceived social acceptance, but not scholastic competence, moderated the link between relational victimization and depressive symptoms over the follow-up for girls, but not boys.

Cross-Sectional and Longitudinal Relations Among Children's Trust Beliefs, Psychological Maladjustment and Social Relationships: Are Very High as Well as Very Low Trusting Children at Risk?

Four hundred and thirty-four children enrolled in school years 5 and 6 in the United Kingdom were administered measures of trust beliefs in peers/best friends and psychosocial functioning (internalized maladjustment, self-perceived social acceptance, social preference, and social exclusion) across an 8-month period (mean age = 9 years-9 months at Time 1). The relation between children's trust beliefs in peers or trust beliefs within best friend dyads and measures of psychosocial functioning conformed to a quadratic pattern. Compared to children in the middle range of trust beliefs, children with very low trust beliefs and those with very high trust beliefs in peers and/or within best friend dyads displayed higher internalized maladjustment, lower self-perceived social acceptance, higher social exclusion, and lower social preference. The relation between the trust beliefs and internalized maladjustment was asymmetrical, with children who held very low trust beliefs being comparatively more disadvantaged.

Self-perceived facial appearance and psychosocial adjustment in preadolescents with craniofacial anomalies.

To identify aspects of psychosocial adjustment related to the self-perceived facial appearance of preadolescents with craniofacial abnormalities. Concurrent relationships were evaluated using a within-group correlational design. Participants were 24 patients, aged 11 to 13, of a major craniofacial center and their parents who were contacted by telephone and agreed to participate. Self-report and parent-report questionnaires assessing psychosocial adjustment. Self-perceived facial appearance was positively correlated with global self-worth, self-perceived social acceptance, and number of same-sex close friends, and negatively correlated with loneliness, parent-rated social problems, and parental advice/support and concern (all p's < .05 or better). Dissatisfaction with facial appearance was associated with peer relationship problems and low global self-esteem, but not with other aspects of self-concept or other types of adjustment problems.

Depression and Nonacademic Self-Perceptions in Children with and without Learning Disabilities

Nonacademic self-perceptions (social acceptance, athletic ability, physical appearance and behavioral conduct) of depressed and nondepressed children with and without learning disabilities were compared. The nonacademic subscales of the Self-Perception Profile for Learning Disabled Students, a domain-specific self-perception measure, and the Children's Depression Inventory, a self-report inventory of depressive symptomatology, were administered to students in grade 5 ( n=83) and grade 8 ( n=88). Results indicated that self-perceived social acceptance demonstrated a significant relationship with depression only for students with learning disabilities. Furthermore, lower self-perception of physical appearance was related to depression for females but not males. Depressed subjects, regardless of gender, reported lower self-perceptions of behavioral conduct and athletic ability. Consistent with previous findings regarding stereotypical self-perceptions, males reported better self-perceptions of athletic ability than females but lower self-perceptions of behavioral conduct. Clinical and theoretical implications are discussed.

Psychological adjustment and experiences with peers during early adolescence: Reciprocal, incidental, or unidirectional relationships?

This study examined the relationship over time involving three types of experiences with peers (amount of contact with friends, intimacy with best friend, rejection by peers) and two indices of psychological adjustment (self-perceived social acceptance and depressive affect) using longitudinal and causal analytic procedures developed within the life stress paradigm. Data were collected twice on a sample of 73 young adolescents, with a 6-month interval between measurements. The results provide partial support for a model of reciprocal influences between experiences with peers and adaptation, since adaptation was predictive of change over time in peer experiences in several instances as well as vice versa. Implications for intervention and further research are presented.