Youth who experience peer victimization are at risk of developing mental health problems. However, little is known about the emotional causal mechanisms linking peer victimization with these negative outcomes. This study investigated whether shame mediated this relationship. At three time points (T1-T3), 396 10- to 13-year-olds completed measures of peer victimization, shame (characterological, bodily, and behavioral; shame proneness), and mental health (depression, social anxiety, and externalizing behavior). Three multiple mediation models tested the indirect effects of T1 victimization on T3 mental health through the four T2 shame-related variables. Analyses revealed indirect effects for the shame-related mediators on depression, social anxiety, and externalizing behaviors. Specifically, indirect positive effects for characterological and bodily shame on depression and social anxiety were found, with greater bodily shame linked to higher levels of social anxiety in girls but not boys. In addition, an indirect negative effect for behavioral shame on externalizing problems was found, with higher levels of externalizing problems in victimized boys but not in girls. Finally, an indirect positive effect for shame proneness and externalizing problems was found. To clarify the directionality, three additional mediation models were run with mental health symptoms as predictors of shame and subsequent victimization. Indirect effects for the shame-related mediators were found for all outcomes, specifically bodily shame and shame proneness as mediators between internalizing and externalizing symptoms and victimization. These three models were compared and contrasted with the hypothesized models. In sum, findings support the role of shame as an underlying emotional mechanism of peer victimization, and may guide intervention programs to address the mental health concerns of victimized youth.

This preliminary study explored a person-group dissimilarity hypothesis in the context of adolescent sexual harassment. Theory suggests that victimized youth are expected to experience worse outcomes if they perceive victimization to be a rare experience among their peers. This study comprised 435 middle school students who reported on their experiences of sexual harassment (victimization and witnessing), shame, and depressive symptoms. We tested a cross-sectional conditional indirect-effects model, with shame mediating the relationship between victimization and depressive symptoms (the indirect effect) and with witnessing as a moderator of the indirect effect. For all students, shame mediated the relationship between victimization and depressive symptoms. For female students, there was a buffering effect of witnessing, whereby the indirect effect was weaker at high levels of witnessing. These findings have potential implications for theory and intervention, suggesting the importance of examining young people’s social contexts to better understand their responses to sexual harassment.

Emotional reactions to peer victimization may increase risk for subsequent peer victimization. In the present study, we investigated whether shame mediated the development of chronic peer victimization, i.e., young people's experiences of being bullied persistently across time. We used a multiple mediation model to test the indirect effects of Time-1 victimization on Time-3 victimization (1 year later) through 4 Time-2 shame-related variables (characterological, bodily, and behavioral shame; shame proneness) for 396 youth (10 -13 years of age). The total indirect effect of Time-1 victimization on Time-3 victimization through the 4 shame-related mediators was statistically significant. Analyses revealed specific indirect positive effects for bodily shame and shame proneness. Findings suggest that shame may be an emotional mechanism underlying chronic peer victimization. Impact and ImplicationsChronic, or persistent, peer victimization is a destructive relationship problem prevalent in youth and associated with a range of negative mental health, social, and academic consequences. This study found that the painful emotion of shame plays a critical role in explaining why youth who are victimized by their peers continue to experience chronic victimization. These findings and continued research in the area may contribute to effective prevention and intervention programs to alleviate the experience of shame in peer-victimized youth and ultimately prevent a cycle of victimization.