Rejection Sensitivity Syndrome (RSS) is a psychological phenomenon that is defined by researchers as “a personality disposition characterized by oversensitivity to social rejection”. Research has shown that individuals who possess higher levels of rejection sensitivity exhibit greater response to social rejection than those who possess lower levels. Interpersonal sensitivity, which focuses on a hypersensitivity to the thoughts and behaviors of others, is a similar phenomenon to rejection sensitivity. A personality disposition noted by researchers is that those who fear or anxiously expect rejection from others may end up leading to a rejection response from another person due to their own fearful behavior, thus creating a self-fulfilling prophecy. RSS is learned through experience, making rejection sensitivity a situational phenomenon, influenced by the situation one is in, as well as the situations that caused the person to develop rejection sensitivity in the first place.
As children enter adolescence, they experience a unique change in life wherein they are expected to develop better emotional regulatory skills. Some children, however, develop maladaptive patterns such as rejection sensitivity, and these issues can be ongoing into adulthood. For those with ADHD, rejection sensitivity may even have more of a basis in reality, with causes stemming from as early as their childhood. Research shows that “disrupted peer relationships are perhaps the most frequent, persistent, and treatment resistant domain of impairment demonstrated by children with ADHD, with estimates of prevalence of peer rejection in children with ADHD ranging from 50 to 80%.” Across the lifespan, individuals who are highly rejection-sensitive defensively expect rejection in social situations. They tend to avoid rejection from others by avoiding people, and isolating themselves from situations where they believe they may experience rejection. Higher levels of rejection sensitivity have been shown to be associated with higher levels of depression, anxiety, loneliness, borderline personality disorder, and body dysmorphic disorder as an individual enters adulthood. Effects of RSS on an individual can include problems with interpersonal skills as well as with self-perception and self-worth. Addressing RSS before or during adolescence can be crucial to helping a child develop neurotypically in this regard.
Working on protective factors with children has been shown to be helpful in promoting healthy, adaptive growth. Rejection-sensitive individuals who are highly capable of exerting self-control to delay gratification are evidenced as having equivalent regulation of effective responses to social stimuli, compared to their non-rejection-sensitive counterparts. Thus, developing strong self-control skills and regulatory skills as a child grows up is important – especially if a child tends to hold negative perceptions of the social information they observe.
If you are concerned about your child having RSS, please call our office for more information.
Steven P. Greco, PhD, ABN
Board Certified, Neuropsychology