Being bullied and depressive symptoms in Chinese high school students: The role of social support

Abstract

The aims of this study were to: 1) examine the relationship between being bullied and depressive symptoms; 2) explore whether the three mentioned sources of social support moderated this association; and 3) examine gender differences in the moderating effects of social support on bullying-associated depressive symptoms among Chinese high school students. A total of 1252 students were selected from three high schools in Zhenping County of Henan Province in China. The results suggest that bullying victimization is significantly associated with depressive symptoms among high school students. In addition, we found that only school-type social support had a moderating effect on depressive symptoms. Those who had been bullied but who had high levels of school support had lower levels of depressive symptoms than those with less school support. However, moderating effects of this support were only found for girls, not for boys. This study empirically supports that programs aimed at boosting social support for students from teachers and classmates, could help protect high school students from depressive symptoms.

Keywords: Being bullied; Depression; High school students.