Study finds childhood bullying linked to distrust and mental health problems in adolescence

A new study, co-led by UCLA Health and the University of Glasgow, found that young adolescents who develop a strong distrust of others as a result of childhood bullying are much more likely to have significant mental health problems in adulthood than young adolescents. those who do not develop interpersonal trust issues.

The study, published in the journal Natural mental health on February 13, would be the first to examine the link between peer bullying, interpersonal distrust and the subsequent development of mental health problems, such as anxiety, depression, hyperactivity and anger.

Researchers used data from 10,000 children in the UK studied over almost two decades as part of the Millennium Cohort Study. From this data, researchers found that adolescents who were bullied at age 11 and who developed greater interpersonal distrust by age 14 were about 3.5 times more likely to experience clinically significant mental health problems at age 17 than those who developed less distrust.

The findings could help schools and other institutions develop new evidence-based interventions to counter the negative impacts of bullying on mental health, according to the study’s lead author, Dr. George Slavich, who directs the UCLA Health Stress Assessment and Research Laboratory.

“There are few public health topics more important than youth mental health right now,” Slavich said. “To help adolescents reach their full potential, we must invest in research that identifies risk factors for poor health and translates this knowledge into prevention programs that can improve health and resilience throughout the lifespan. throughout life.”

These findings come amid growing public health concerns about the mental health of young people. Recent studies by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 44.2% of high school students sampled in the United States reported being depressed for at least two weeks in 2021, and one in 10 college students surveyed had reported a suicide attempt that year.

In this new study, researchers examined these alarming trends through the lens of social safety theory, which hypothesizes that social threats, such as bullying, impact mental health in part by instilling the belief that others cannot be trusted or that the world is a hostile, dangerous, or unpredictable place.

Previous research has identified associations between bullying and mental and behavioral health problems among youth, including its impact on substance abuse, depression, anxiety, self-harm and suicidal thoughts. However, by following young people over time, this study is the first to confirm how bullying leads to distrust and, consequently, mental health problems in late adolescence.

Slavich said when people develop clinically significant mental health problems during adolescence, it can increase their risk of suffering mental and physical health problems throughout their lives if left unchecked.

In addition to interpersonal distrust, the authors examined whether diet, sleep, or physical activity also associated peer harassment with later mental health problems. However, only interpersonal distrust associated bullying with increased risk of mental health problems at age 17.

“What this data suggests is that we really need school-based programs that help foster a sense of interpersonal trust at the classroom and school level,” Slavich said. “One way to do this would be to develop evidence-based programs that are particularly focused on the transition to high school and college, and that present school as an opportunity to develop close, lasting relationships. “

The study was co-authored by Dr. George Slavich, professor of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences at UCLA, and Dr. Dimitris Tsomokos, a researcher at the University of Glasgow.