Teruggetrokken gedrag leidt tot negatieve nonverbale communicatie onder adolescenten. Waarheid of leugen?

Abstract

Aim: Limited social skills can result in negative feedback from others, withdrawn behaviour, depression and peer rejection. This study investigates the difference between the nonverbal behaviour of socially withdrawn and non-socially withdrawn adolescents, whether female and male adolescents differ in their nonverbal behaviour, and whether the amount of depressive symptoms affect the nonverbal behavior of adolescents. Method: The study consisted of 78 high school students who are aged between 13 and 19 years (M = 15,77; SD = 1.15). The participants were divided into couples and were videotaped during a 5-minute conversation about several social dilemma’s. Withdrawn behaviour and depressive symptoms were determined by questionnaires. Results: The results show that male adolescents use significant more negative nonverbal behavior than female adolescents. By contrast, female adolescents use more positive nonverbal. Dat vloeit vanzelf voort uit de vorige opmerking. No difference is found in the nonverbale communication between socially withdrawn and non-socially withdrawn adolescents. As well, adolescents with a high amount of depressive symptoms did not differ in their nonverbale communication with regard to adolescents with a low amount of depressive symptoms. Conclusion: This study highlights the importance and impact of taking into account gender differences in the nonverbal communication of adolescents during conversations