Students' ratings of school climate as a moderator between self-esteem and internalizing symptoms in a community-based high school population

Abstract

The prevalence of anxiety and depression symptoms in adolescents is increasing. Both self-esteem and school climate have been found to predict mental health symptoms in adolescents and young adults, though little is known about how these constructs interact. The purpose of the current study was to examine the moderating role of school climate in the relation between self-esteem and internalizing concerns in a weighted, stratified sample of high school students. Ninety-five participants ages 14–19 (51.43% male) completed self-report measures of self-esteem (Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale), school climate (Psychological Sense of School Membership Scale), and internalizing symptoms (Revised Child Anxiety and Depression Scale). There were significant negative correlations between all internalizing concerns and both self-esteem and school climate. Significant moderating effects of school climate were found such that students' ratings of low self-esteem were more strongly associated with depression, generalized anxiety, and panic symptoms when they perceived a poorer school climate. Low self-esteem was related to social anxiety, while perception of poor school climate was associated with separation anxiety and obsessive-compulsive symptoms. School climate may act as a protective factor, buffering the relation between low self-esteem and depression and some anxiety subtypes in adolescents. Implications for prevention and intervention are discussed.