مقایسه گزارشات طرد همسالان: ارتباطات با حساسیت طرد، قربانی، خشونت و دوستی

Perceiving that one is rejected is an important correlate of emotional maladjustment. Yet, self-perceptions can substantially differ from classmate-reports of who is rejected. In this study, discrepancies between self- and classmate-reports of rejection were identified in 359 Australian adolescents (age 10–12 years). As expected, adolescents who overestimated rejection reported more rejection sensitivity and felt more victimized by their peers, but were not seen by peers as more victimized. Adolescents who underestimated rejection identified themselves as high in overt aggression, and their peers identified them as high in overt and relational aggression and low in prosocial behavior. Yet, underestimators' feelings of friendship satisfaction did not seem to suffer and they reported low rejection sensitivity. Results suggest that interventions to promote adolescent health should explicitly recognize the different needs of those who do and do not seem to perceive their high rejection, as well as adolescents who overestimate their rejection.

Theory and research identify peer rejection in adolescence as a significant risk for emotional maladjustment (Beeri and Lev-Wiesel, 2012 and Zimmer-Gembeck et al., 2009), but research also has identified the particular importance of adolescents' perceptions of whether they are accepted or rejected by their peers (Bowker and Spencer, 2010 and Graham et al., 2003). When adolescents perceive they are rejected, the link with emotional maladjustment is often even stronger, accounting for additional variance in depressive symptoms and other aspects of emotional health (White & Kistner, 2011). Because of the importance of perceptions of belonging and rejection for understanding emotional health (Baumeister & Leary, 1995), perceptual differences have been an increasing focus of recent research. Results show that some adolescents have perceptions of their peer rejection that agrees with their peers' reports, but others over- or underestimate their peer problems (Cole et al., 1998, Hoffman et al., 2000 and Zimmer-Gembeck et al., 2007). Overestimation of rejection, defined as an elevated perception of being disliked (i.e., rejected) when compared to reports from others about whom they do dislike, has been found to identify a group of young people that is at similar risk for mental health problems when compared to young people who are actually highly rejected (Graham et al., 2003, Hoffman et al., 2000, Sandstrom et al., 2003 and White and Kistner, 2011). In fact, it is not even the case that many overestimators can actually be called rejected since their peers often say they are average or even more liked than average. Overestimators do, however, report high levels of emotional problems, such as depressive symptoms, that are similar to adolescents who are accurate about the extent of their rejection. In contrast, adolescents who agree with their peers about their level of acceptance, or who are rejected but underestimate it, do not show the same internalizing problems as overestimators and low accepted youth. Young people who agree (i.e., are concordant) with their peers about their high rejection and those who overestimate rejection are at risk for mental health problems, but these groups are important to distinguish because each would likely benefit from different types of interventions. For example, those with accurate perceptions may need an individual intervention to improve their self-concept and their social skills, while having opportunities to practice new skills. In contrast, those young people who overestimate their rejection may need more personal assistance to identify the reasons for their misperceptions and individualized help to address them. Finally, a third group, underestimators of rejection, could have a positive self-system or other social strengths, but may also have some risk factors that might assist with intervention design. On the one hand, underestimators, by definition, underestimate their own social rejection, and this may reflect higher self-esteem and other positive attributes when compared to rejected adolescents who are aware of their rejection (or those who overestimate rejection; David & Kistner, 2000). On the other hand, previous research has found that they are higher in aggressive behavior than their typical peers, although almost all studies have been conducted with children rather than adolescents and almost all have focused on overt (i.e., physical and verbal) aggression only (Brendgen et al., 2004, Edens et al., 1999, Guerra et al., 2004 and White and Kistner, 2011). Thus, previous research has shown that there are groups of young people who overestimate or underestimate their rejection by peers. This information has been useful for identifying elevated symptoms of mental health problems, but no study has focused on identifying personal and social factors that are likely to account for youth's overestimation and underestimation of rejection. In the present study, the aim was to identify correlates of overestimation and underestimation of rejection focusing on factors amenable to intervention such as social cognitive biases and social behavior and experiences. It was anticipated that this information could be useful for developing interventions to address the diversity of needs of young people at risk of mental health problems. Such information could also identify personal and social factors associated with adolescents' positive self-perceptions despite the negative views of others.

As can be seen in Table 1, adolescents who perceived they were more rejected reported greater rejection sensitivity, victimization, relational aggression, and lower friendship satisfaction. Also, when adolescents perceived they were more rejected, their peers reported that they were more relationally victimized and less prosocial. Higher rejection, as identified by classmates, was associated with more victimization, more aggression, less prosocial behavior, and less friendship satisfaction, but classmate-reported rejection was not associated with rejection sensitivity. Age was only associated with more overt aggression. Gender was associated with most measures. Girls were less rejected and relationally victimized and more prosocial according to classmates. Girls reported higher friendship satisfaction, less overt victimization and aggression, and less relational aggression.