Psychological Development and Education ›› 2016, Vol. 32 ›› Issue (3): 339-348.doi: 10.16187/j.cnki.issn1001-4918.2016.03.11

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The Effect of Friendship Network in Class on College Students' Depression: A Social Network Analysis

YOU Zhiqi1,2,3, ZHANG Fengjuan4, FAN Cuiying2,3, PING Fan5, ZHOU Zongkui2,3   

  1. 1. Department of Sociology, Huazhong Agricultural University;Research Center For Rural Social Construction and Management, Wuhan 430070;
    2. Key Laboratory of Adolescent Cyberpsychology and Behavior, Ministry of Education, Wuhan 430079;
    3. School of psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079;
    4. School of Education Science, Guangxi University for Nationalities, Nanning 530006;
    5. School of Marxism, Central China Normal University, Wuhan 430079
  • Online:2016-05-15 Published:2016-05-15

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Abstract: Using social network analysis approach, the current study was investigate the predictive power of depressive friends in class on the chance of college students becoming depression. The present study hypothesizes were tested using data from 73 classes composed of 3034 individuals. The main findings were as follows:(1) The quantity of mutual friends had negative predictive power on depression.(2) There was no difference between the students who's had at least one depressive mutual friend and the students whose mutual friends are all no depression. (3) The quantity of depressive friends who nominated or be nominated by a person had significant positive predictive power on a person's chance of becoming depression. This association extended up to two degrees of separation (to one's friends' friends). (4) The quantity of same-sex depressive friends had significant positive predictive power on a person's chance of becoming depression, and there was no significant predictive power of cross-sex depression friends on a person's chance of becoming depression.

Key words: depression, friendship network in class, same-sex friends, cross-sex friends

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