Social connection and self-perceived depression among adolescents: A path analytic model for Abu Dhabi

Masood Badri*, Mugheer Al Khaili, Muna Al Bahar, Guang Yang, Georgina Reynhout, Asma Al Rashdi

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

11 Citations (Scopus)
49 Downloads (Pure)

Abstract

We examined how family and friendship connections of adolescents (15–19 years old) interrelate and how these interactions affect their self-perceived depression and stress. The data were collected through the Abu Dhabi Quality of Life Survey in 2018, which was completed by more than 51,000 respondents. Nine hundred and fifty-eight out of 3356 adolescents in the survey self-identified themselves as depressed. We developed a structural equation path model to explicate the relationships among the variables hypothesized to affect adolescents’ self-reported depression. The results produced an excellent fit of statistics of the model to the data. In general, social connections and relationships with family and friends directly affected adolescents’ self-perceived depressive feelings. More specifically, variables such as “often feeling isolated from people,” “the amount of quality time spent with family,” “the frequency of meeting with friends, relatives or colleagues,” and “involvement in informal activities with friends” had the greatest total effects on adolescents’ self-perceived depression. “The amount of quality time spent with family” also exerted indirect influence on feelings of isolation. Involvement in sports groups, involvement in religious and spiritual groups, and generalized trust did not exhibit any direct influence but had an indirect impact on self-perceived depression. The findings could contribute to the current understanding of theories of depression and yield implications for social policy, social service, and social work interventions for school-aged adolescents in Abu Dhabi.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)146-157
Number of pages12
JournalJournal of Child and Family Studies
Volume30
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Jan 2021
Externally publishedYes

Bibliographical note

Copyright the Author(s) 2021. Version archived for private and non-commercial use with the permission of the author/s and according to publisher conditions. For further rights please contact the publisher.

Keywords

  • self-perceived depression
  • social connection
  • adolescents
  • path analysis
  • Abu Dhabi

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