Download Peer Relations - People Server at UNCW

Peer Groups: Structure
• Typically range in size from 3 to >10
children (average = 5-6)
• Mostly composed of same-sex peers
• During childhood, peer groups tend to be
smaller (“cliques”); during adolescence,
peer groups become larger (“crowds”)
Peer Groups: Functions
• Children learn a variety of skills necessary for
group functioning
– Exs: engagement in cooperative activity with collective
goals; nature of social structures/hierarchies; skills
associated with leading/following; control of hostile
impulses toward other members
• Peer groups may also serve as a major source of
social support
Peer Acceptance and Rejection
• Popularity: Experience of being liked and
accepted by the peer group
Assessment of Peer Acceptance
• Sociometric nominations
– Used within a classroom
– Children are typically asked to name 3-5 peers
they like most and like least
– Children are categorized into status groups
based on the number of positive and negative
nominations they receive from peers
Peer Acceptance Categories:
• Popular: Many positive nominations, few negative
• Rejected: Many negative nominations, few positive
• Controversial: Many positive and negative nominations
• Neglected: Few positive or negative nominations
• Average: All others
Correlates of Peer Acceptance
• Popular:
– Generally viewed as cooperative, friendly, sociable, and
sensitive
– Less likely to draw unwarranted attention to themselves when
entering ongoing playgroups (e.g., do not talk exclusively about
themselves; do not disrupt ongoing group activities)
– Speak clearly and respond contingently to social overtures from
others
– Endorse negotiation and compromise as effective strategies for
obtaining their goals and maintaining positive relationships
with peers
• Controversial:
– Show a combination of positive and negative
social behaviors
– Some data indicate these children are likely to
be perceived as popular
• Neglected:
– Interact with peers less frequently than
“average” children
– Less sociable, aggressive, and disruptive than
other children
– No consistent evidence that neglected children
are socially anxious or more withdrawn than
“average” children
• Rejected:
– Most consistently associated with aggression
• But aggression seems to become less strongly
associated with rejection with age, especially
among boys
– Aggressive children only comprise 40-50% of
the rejected group
– Tend to endorse aggression as an effective
means of meeting social goals; seem to lack
understanding that their behaviors lead others
to dislike them
– Socially anxious, timid, and withdrawn children
are also more likely to be rejected
• Association with rejection becomes stronger in late
childhood and early adolescence
– 10-20% of the rejected group
– Tend to be behaviorally submissive; indicate
negative thoughts/feelings about themselves
and their social relationships; indicate feelings
of isolation and loneliness
Peer Rejection and Later Adjustment
• Peer rejection in childhood predicts externalizing
problems in adolescence
– Exs: delinquency, conduct disorder, attention problems,
substance abuse
• Some evidence indicates that early peer rejection
uniquely predicts later externalizing problems even
when previous externalizing behavior is controlled
• Similarly, some evidence indicates that peer
rejection predicts subsequent increases in
aggression over time, controlling for initial levels of
aggression
Peer Rejection and Later Adjustment (con’t)
• Social withdrawal is associated with later
internalizing problems
– Exs: low self-esteem, anxiety problems,
depressive symptoms, loneliness
• Some evidence indicates that peer rejection
predicts increases in internalizing problems
over time