BURLINGTON, Vt., March 28 (UPI) -- Popular children tend to have less anxiety or depression, while anxious and depressed children tend to have a harder time with friends, a U.S. study says.
Researchers at the University of Vermont and the University of Minnesota tracked 205 individuals from age 8 to 12 over 20 years into young adulthood. The researchers used detailed interviews with participants and reports from their parents, teachers and classmates to create measures of so-called internalizing problems -- anxiety, depressed mood, being withdrawn and social competence -- how well one functions in relation to other people, particularly with respect to getting along with others and forming close relationships.
The study, published in March/April issue of the journal Child Development, found young people who had more internalizing problems at the start of the study were more likely to be anxious or depressed in adolescence and young adulthood. Those who were socially competent at the start of the study were socially competent as they grew up.
However, the study also found evidence of spillover effects, where social problems contributed to increasing internalizing symptoms over time.
