Momentary state anhedonia is associated with the quantity and quality of daily-life peer experiences among adolescents at varying risk for suicidal thoughts and behaviors

Anhedonia is a common and impairing symptom of psychopathology that predicts negative outcomes and may undermine peer relationships. Anhedonia comprises both trait (stable, time-invariant) and state (dynamic, time-varying) components. Relative to trait anhedonia, state anhedonia may be more strongly related to proximal risk for deleterious outcomes. Yet, associations between state anhedonia and daily-life socio-affective experiences in adolescence are not well understood. Thus, the present study used ecological momentary assessment (EMA) to examine within-person associations between state anhedonia and the quantity and quality of daily-life peer interactions among a sample of adolescents enriched for suicidality risk, a population at high risk for anhedonic and peer problems. Participants included 102 adolescents assigned female at birth (ages 12–18; M[SD] = 15.34[1.50]; 67.6% at elevated risk for suicidality). State anhedonia, as well as being with peers, connectedness with peers, and positive affect with peers, was measured three times per day for 10 days via EMA ( n = 30 prompts). Multilevel models demonstrated that within-person fluctuations in state anhedonia relate to reduced odds of being with peers, as well as decreased connectedness and positive affect with peers. Findings suggest that dynamic changes in state anhedonia are related to both the quantity and quality of peer experiences among adolescents.