Child Internalizing Problems in Ukraine: The Role of Prosocial and Antisocial Friends and Generalized Self-Efficacy

The current study examines the association between peer behaviors, self-efficacy, and internalizing symptoms in a sample of 1545 children aged 11 to 13 years old who attended middle schools in eastern Ukraine. We used structural equation modeling (SEM) to examine the role of self-efficacy in the relationship between child internalizing behaviors (anxiety, depression, and somatic complaints) and exposure to prosocial and antisocial friends among girls and boys. Higher self-efficacy was linked with fewer internalizing symptoms for girls and boys. For both boys and girls, exposure to prosocial friends was not statistically associated with changes in internalizing behaviors. However, girls and boys who reported having more antisocial friends had significantly more internalizing symptoms. For girls, association with a greater number of prosocial friends and fewer antisocial friends has been linked with higher self-efficacy and fewer internalizing symptoms. For boys, having more prosocial friends was also linked with higher self-efficacy and fewer internalizing symptoms; however, there was no statistically significant association between having more antisocial friends and self-efficacy. The study discusses the cultural and gender aspects of child socialization in the context of antisocial and prosocial friends, and the development of internalizing behavior problems.