Behavioral Assessment and Sequential Analysis of Peer Interactions of Children With and Without Depressive Symptoms

Abstract

The present study assessed interpersonal behavior and peer interaction patterns of children with and without depressive symptoms (in each group, fifth grade: 2 boys and 3 girls; sixth grade: 2 boys and 3 girls), using a direct observation method in which the children's behavior was coded in a free-play setting and in a semi-structured social problem-solving task setting. The results suggested that the children with depressive symptoms spent more time alone in the free-play setting than the children without depressive symptoms did. Lag sequential analysis of the interaction data revealed that during the social problem-solving task, the children with depressive symptoms engaged in significantly fewer positive interactions and more withdrawal behavior than did the children without depressive symptoms. Further, the withdrawal behavior of the children with depressive symptoms appeared to decrease the likelihood of their peers'aggressive behavior. The discussion dealt with the function in peer interactions of the interpersonal behavior of children with depressive symptoms, and the possible support that the present results provide for an interpersonal model of childhood depression. © 2013, The Japanese Association of Educational Psychology. All rights reserved.