Habilidades Sociales en Adolescentes: Una Revisión de la Evidencia Empírica

Social skills constitute a multidimensional set of behavioral, cognitive, and emotional competencies that enable effective and adaptive interpersonal interaction during adolescence. This chapter presents a systematic review of the scientific literature published between 2015 and 2025 with the aim of synthesizing empirical evidence on the conceptualization of the construct, its theoretical foundations, associations with mental health, and the effectiveness of intervention programs. The PRISMA 2020 guidelines were followed for the identification, selection, and analysis of studies. The search was conducted in indexed databases (Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, and PsycINFO), including empirical research with adolescent populations (10–19 years). After applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, 25 studies of high and medium methodological quality were selected. The results show significant negative associations between social skills and anxiety and depressive symptoms, as well as positive relationships with self-esteem, resilience, school adjustment, and subjective well-being. Longitudinal studies indicate that deficits in social competence predict greater emotional vulnerability in the medium term. Social skills constitute a multidimensional set of behavioral, cognitive, and emotional competencies that enable effective and adaptive interpersonal interaction during adolescence. This chapter presents a systematic review of the scientific literature published between 2015 and 2025 with the aim of synthesizing empirical evidence on the conceptualization of the construct, its theoretical foundations, associations with mental health, and the effectiveness of intervention programs. The PRISMA 2020 guidelines were followed for the identification, selection, and analysis of studies. The search was conducted in indexed databases (Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, and PsycINFO), including empirical research with adolescent populations (10–19 years). After applying inclusion and exclusion criteria, 25 studies of high and medium methodological quality were selected. The results show significant negative associations between social skills and anxiety and depressive symptoms, as well as positive relationships with self-esteem, resilience, school adjustment, and subjective well-being. Longitudinal studies indicate that deficits in social competence predict greater emotional vulnerability in the medium term.