Peer Victimization and Subjective Well-Being Among Chinese Adolescents: Moderated Mediation by Forgiveness and Self-Esteem

• Published in: Journal of interpersonal violence Vol. 38; no. 11-12; pp. 7355 - 7382
• Main Authors: Liu, Jiaoyu, Li, Dongping, Jia, Jichao, Liu, Yuxiao, Lv, Yaxin, Zhai, Boyu
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.06.2023; SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adolescents; Bullying; Crime Victims; East Asian People; Forgiveness; Humans; Middle schools; Peer Group; Peer Relationship; Peer relationships; Protective factors; Self Concept; Self esteem; Surveys and Questionnaires; Teenagers; Victimization; Well being; China; self-esteem; adolescents; peer victimization; forgiveness; subjective well-being; moderated mediation
• ISSN: 0886-2605; 1552-6518
• DOI: 10.1177/08862605221145721

Considerable developmental research has shown an association between peer victimization and subjective well-being among adolescents. However, the mediating processes and protective factors that constrain this association are less understood. To fill these gaps, we investigated whether self-esteem mediates the association between peer victimization and subjective well-being and whether forgiveness moderates the direct and indirect associations of peer victimization with adolescents’ subjective well-being via self-esteem. A large sample of 2,758 adolescents (Mage = 13.53 years, SD = 1.06) from 10 middle schools in China participated in this study. Participants provided data on demographic variables, peer victimization, self-esteem, forgiveness, and subjective well-being by answering anonymous questionnaires. After controlling for demographic covariates, we found that self-esteem mediated the relationship between peer victimization and subjective well-being. Furthermore, as a protective factor, forgiveness moderated the relationship between peer victimization and self-esteem. Consistent with the protective-reactive model, when adolescents experienced more peer victimization, those with higher forgiveness levels exhibited a greater decline in self-esteem, and low self-esteem was then associated with decreased subjective well-being. These findings demonstrate the utility of examining both mediating and moderating factors in this relationship and highlight the negative impact of peer victimization on adolescent self-worth and the limited role of forgiveness as a protective factor.