Child's lack of friends risks teen blues

MONTREAL, Dec. 19 (UPI) -- Children who are friendless may risk spiraling into depression as teenagers, a Canadian researcher says.

Lead author William Bukowski of Concordia University in Montreal says just as a snowball rapidly grows as it rolls down a hill, friendless children can become social outcasts who risk spiraling into depression by adolescence,

However, having at least one friend can be protective for withdrawn or shy kids, Bukowski says.

"Being isolated and excluded from the peer group can increase levels of depressed feelings in children and those negative feelings can escalate throughout adolescence," Bukowski says in a statement.

The study, published in the journal Development and Psychopathology, finds friendship promotes resilience and protects at-risk kids from internalizing problems such as feeling depressed and anxious.

"Our study confirms the value of having friends, which are like a shield against negative social experiences," Bukowski says.

Bukowski and colleagues at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, Fla., University of Vermont in Burlington studied 130 girls and 101 boys in the third through fifth grades for three years.