Dependency, self-criticism, social context and distress: comparing moderating and mediating models

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Abstract

Moderating and mediating models of dependency and self-criticism as vulnerabilities to emotional distress are compared. According to the moderating model, stressful events and social support moderate the vulnerability of self-critical and dependent individuals. In contrast, mediating models relate to stress and support as mediators assuming that individuals generate stress and lack of support over time. One hundred and eighty-two young adults were assessed longitudinally, and hierarchical multiple regression and structural equation modeling were performed. The moderating model was found valid for describing the vulnerability of dependent individuals, who reported increased distress only after experiencing interpersonal stress. The mediating model appropriately described the vulnerability of self-critical individuals, who reported increased stress and decreased support over time, which partly accounted for their increased distress. These findings are discussed in relation to the formulation of causal models of personality and distress.

Introduction

Recent research suggests that dependent and self-critical individuals are vulnerable to depressive symptoms and emotional distress (Blatt & Zuroff, 1992). Dependent individuals tend to seek close and protecting relations at the expense of developing a self-concept. Self-critical individuals are disposed to neglect interpersonal relations in their pursuit of achievement and self-esteem. Thus, while the ability to negotiate interpersonal relatedness and self-definition is considered an indication of maturity and health, the over-reliance on either of these dimensions is seen as a marker of vulnerability (Blatt and Zuroff, 1992, Helgeson, 1994, Robins, 1995).

Social context variables such as stressful events and social support are treated as moderators of the vulnerability of dependent and self-critical individuals. For instance, the ‘congruency hypothesis’ (Coyne and Whiffen, 1995, Robins, 1995) suggests that self-critical individuals will report increased distress as a result of experiencing achievement stress (e.g. an exam failure); increased distress will also be reported by dependent individuals experiencing interpersonal stress (e.g. a romantic breakup). To date, the empirical status of the congruency hypothesis is unclear. Support for this hypothesis has been reported mainly for dependency, but not for self-criticism (Coyne and Whiffen, 1995, Robins, 1995).

Building on the well-known stress-buffering effect of social support (Cohen & Wills, 1985), researchers have suggested that the stress-buffering effect may be especially strong among dependent individuals (Blatt et al., 1993, Bornstein, 1995). However, evidence in favor of that higher order interaction is both scarce and mixed (Barnett and Gotlib, 1990, Bornstein, 1995, Keinan and Hobfoll, 1989).

Underlying the congruency hypothesis is the assumption that dependent and self-critical individuals are passive in relation to their social context. These individuals are expected to react to stressful events and lack of support, but not to affect their occurrences. In such a model, contextual factors act as moderators, specifying the conditions under which dependent and self-critical individuals would be distressed. In contrast, a mediating model assumes that individuals, constrained by dependent or self-critical tendencies, influence stressful events and social support. Changes in levels of stress and support might, in turn, affect individuals’ distress levels. In this model, contextual factors operate as mediators, rather than moderators: they do not specify the conditions under which personality and distress are linked, but outline the processes through which personality affects distress (Baron & Kenny, 1986).

Vulnerabilities of both dependent and self-critical individuals could be described using the mediating model. Highly self-critical individuals, in their attempts to accomplish their goals, may actively become overloaded, consequently increasing their chances of failure (Hewitt & Flett, 1991). Furthermore, these individuals usually emphasize achievement at the expense of interpersonal relationships, which may lead to interpersonal stress and lack of social support (Helgeson, 1994). Similarly, the over-involvement of dependent individuals in interpersonal relations may deplete significant others, and also hinder attempts of achieving important personal goals. This would increase achievement and interpersonal stress, and decrease social support (Blatt and Zuroff, 1992, Helgeson, 1994). At the same time, dependency may lead to an increase in social support (Mongrain, 1993, Mongrain, 1998).

We compared the moderating and mediating models by assessing young adults twice during a 9-week interval. Participants’ self-criticism and dependency were measured at Time 1, and their levels of recent stress, perceived support, and depressed mood were assessed on both occasions. Congruent with a moderating model, increased distress was expected to be reported by dependent participants experiencing interpersonal stress and lack of support, and by self-critical participants experiencing achievement stress. Congruent with a mediating model, both dependent and self-critical participants were hypothesized to generate non-specific stress and produce a decrease of social support, which was in turn hypothesized to increase distress.

Section snippets

Participants

Participants were 182 young adults (117 women, 65 men, age range 18–48, mean=23), recruited from three institutions: Ben-Gurion University, Sapir College and a Military Academy. Participants either received course credit for participating (68%) or volunteered (32%). Neither motivation to participate nor age or institution affiliation affected the results obtained. We therefore treated the sample as a unified whole.

Depressive experiences questionnaire (DEQ)

The DEQ is a 66-item scale containing statements about experiences of the self

Descriptive data and intercorrelations

Means, standard deviations, and intercorrelations for the variables used in the analyses are presented in Table 1. As shown in Table 1, dependency and self-criticism were modestly correlated (r=0.16, P<0.05). Both personality dimensions were correlated with distress, but the correlations involving self-criticism and distress were stronger then those involving dependency (r=0.22 and r=0.63 at Time 1, and r=0.18 and r=0.61 at Time 2 for dependency and self-criticism, respectively). Self-criticism

Discussion

In the present study we compared moderating and mediating models of the vulnerability of self-critical and dependent individuals. Our results bear relevance to previous conceptualizations of dependency and self-criticism, and to the formulation of causal models of personality and distress.

Acknowledgements

This study was partly supported by the B. Steiner’s Family Program at Ben-Gurion University. Golan Shahar was supported by a Kreitman Doctoral Fellowship, and by a Grant from the British Council in Tel-Aviv.

We would like to thank Avi Besser and Dr. Nachshon Meiran for their helpful comments on earlier drafts of this paper.

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