Self-Esteem Moderates the Relationship Between Secure Attachment and Internalizing and Externalizing Problems in Preadolescence

This longitudinal study examined the interactive effects of secure attachment and self-esteem on change in internalizing and externalizing problems in a sample of preadolescents. 407 youth ( Mage = 11.1 years) completed measures of self-esteem, secure attachment style, and peer nomination inventories tapping internalizing and externalizing problems at the beginning of the fourth and fifth grades. Results suggest that internalizing and externalizing problems may be reduced for securely attached youth with high self-esteem. Implications for future research are examined, along with a discussion on clinical applications of studies involving interaction effects.

Adolescents who are nonusers of fashionable social networking platforms

Social media use is central to the organization of adolescent peer groups. Nonetheless, a small percentage of youth report that they do not have an active presence on any of the social networking platforms that are commonly accessed by their peers. The current study examines the academic and social functioning of this under investigated subgroup. We recruited 376 adolescents (M = 14.4 years of age; 209 girls) from an ethnically diverse urban high school. Participants completed self-report questionnaires assessing digital communication tendencies. A peer nomination inventory was used to index social reputations and reciprocated friendships. In addition, achievement data were obtained from school records. Forty-eight adolescents (12 girls) reported that they did not use any the social networking platforms that were in vogue with their peers (i.e., Snapchat, Instagram, and Twitter). Our findings presented a mixed picture regarding the adjustment of these youth. Compared to their classmates, nonusers of fashionable social networks were less popular and had fewer friends. On the other hand, nonusers were relatively high achieving and tended to establish a small number of friendships with academically high achieving peers.

Loneliness and Social Functioning in Adolescent Peer Victimization

Interpersonal adversity such as peer victimization has been shown to have complex associations with other socio-emotional difficulties, particularly during adolescence. We used a multidimensional peer nomination measure on a sample of 440 (52% girls) 11- to 17-year-old (M = 13.14 years, SD = 1.26) Portuguese youths to identify three groups, classified by peers as (1) victimized adolescents who showed anxious withdrawn behaviors in the context of the peer group (n = 111), (2) victimized adolescents who did not exhibit anxious withdrawn behaviors (n = 104), and (3) non-victimized adolescents (n = 225). We compared these groups on their peer-reported social functioning and on their self-reported feelings of social and emotional loneliness (with peers and family). Anxiously withdrawn victims were viewed by peers as more excluded, less aggressive, less prosocial, and less popular than non-withdrawn victims and non-victims. Non-anxiously withdrawn victims were considered more excluded than non-victims, and more aggressive than both anxiously withdrawn victims and non-victims. Finally, anxiously withdrawn victims reported feeling less integrated and intimate with their peers than non-withdrawn victims and non-victims, which is indicative of greater feelings of social and emotional loneliness at school. Youths in the current study did not report feeling lonely in their family environment. Our findings thus provide further evidence that victimized youths constitute a heterogeneous group, which differ in the way they behave toward their peers and experience loneliness.

The importance of considering and reporting sources of error in peer nomination research: A response to Bukowski et al.

A wide variety of methodological choices and situations can affect the quality of peer nomination measurements but have not received adequate study. This article begins by focusing on systematic nominator missingness as an example of one such situation. We reanalyzed findings from a recent study by Bukowski, Dirks, Commisso, Velàsquez, and Lopez in the year 2019 and compared the results to recent findings of Babcock, Marks, van den Berg, and Cillessen published in the year 2018 to show that systematic nominator missingness can, indeed, have an impact on nomination measures. From there, we discuss the importance of considering sources of error and the ways that sources of error are analyzed. Ultimately, we argue that systematic nominator missingness is one of several potential sources of error that have largely been ignored in the literature, and that analyzing and reporting these sources of error would strengthen the foundations of peer nomination research.

Effects of Aggressive Movies on Children’s Aggressive Behaviour

This study was about effects of aggressive movies on children’s aggressive behaviour. Forty (40) pupils were randomly selected from Korle Abansoro Primary School, Koforidua, Eastern Ghana, to participate in the study. An adapted version of peer nomination instrument for aggression designed by Crick & Grotpeter in 1995 was used to acquire the data. Half the participants watched an aggressive movie while the other half watched non-aggressive movie for thirty minutes each after which the participants were assessed using the aggressive behavioral checklist or scale. The independent ‘t’ test was used to analyze the results. Two of the hypotheses were confirmed while the other two were rejected. This indicated that children who watched an aggressive movie exhibited more aggressive behavior than children who watched non-aggressive movie and males were not more aggressive than females. Two of the findings were consistent with previous findings. The implication of these results was discussed.

Peer selection and influence: Students’ interest-driven socio-digital participation and friendship networks

Digital technologies have been increasingly embedded in students’ everyday lives. Interest-driven socio-digital participation (ISDP) involves students’ pursuit of interests mediated by computers, social media, the internet, and mobile devices’ integrated systems. ISDP is likely to intertwine closely with young people’s social networks that has been scarcely studied quantitatively. To close this gap, the present paper investigated students’ peer selection and influence effects of the intensity of their ISDP and friendship networks. We collected two-wave data by administering a peer nomination to trace students’ friendship networks with peers and a self-reported questionnaire to examine students’ ISDP. Participants were 100 students in Finland (female: 53%; mean age = 13.48, in grade 7 in the first wave). Through stochastic actor-oriented modelling, the results showed that the students’ friendship ties with peers influenced the intensity of their ISDP practices to become more similar. Yet, students did not select peers as friends based on similar intensity levels of ISDP. Utilizing influence effect found in students’ ISDP and their peer networks, we suggest that connected learning (Ito et al., 2013) should be promoted to integrate students’ informal and formal learning in order to bridge the gap between students’ informal interest-related digital practices and formal educational practices.

Social Network Survey of Peer Relationship between Urban and Rural Children

In the past, peer nomination method was mainly used to measure children’s peer relationship. Each child in the class was divided into five different grades, from popular to unpopular. This research studies peer relationship from the perspective of social network, and conducts social network analysis (SNA) on the basis of peer nomination. First, the data of children’s nomination and nominees are obtained by peer nomination method, then the matrix is made by Excel, and finally the social network analysis software UCINET is introduced for analysis. This method can analyze the centrality and density of children’s peer relationship from the perspective of individual and group, and express each child’s peer relationship in the form of the graph. In this way, we can further explore the characteristics, structure and influencing factors of children’s peer relationship, and put forward feasible suggestions to promote the development of children’s peer relationship.

Being Friends with or Rejected by Classmates: Aggression Toward Same- and Cross-Ethnic Peers

Whereas previous research suggests that adolescents’ aggressive behavior in itself does not highlight ethnic boundaries, it remains unclear whether classmates’ responses to same- and cross-ethnic aggression strengthen ethnic boundaries. This study examined how adolescents’ aggression toward same- and cross-ethnic peers relates to the positive (friendship) and negative (rejection) relationship nominations they receive from same- and cross-ethnic classmates. Cross-sectional peer nomination data on 917 Dutch and 125 Turkish adolescents in 56 secondary schools were analyzed (mean age = 14.9 year; 51.4% boys). Adolescents received more friendship nominations from same-ethnic than from cross-ethnic classmates, but were not more rejected by cross-ethnic than same-ethnic classmates. Multilevel Poisson and negative binomial regression models showed that, irrespective of aggressor’s ethnic background, adolescents’ aggressive behavior was related to rejection by classmates from the ethnic group that was the target of aggression and to being befriended by classmates from the ethnic group that was not the target of aggression. Specifically, both Dutch and Turkish adolescents who were aggressive toward Dutch peers were rejected by Dutch classmates and befriended by Turkish classmates and vice versa. These findings suggest that classmates’ positive and negative responses to adolescents are related to adolescents’ aggressive behavior based on the ethnic background of the victim, not on the ethnic background of the aggressor. This suggests that integration between ethnic groups in schools relates to aggression in general, not only cross-ethnic aggression.

THE EFFECTS OF POPULAR PRO-SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR CHILDREN ON PEERS AND SCHOOL ENVIRONMENT

The aims of the study were to find out the effects of popular pro-social children on peers and school environment. Mixed methods were used in the present study which had two phases; quantitative method and qualitative method. Peer matrix of peer nomination was used as data collection in quantitative, meanwhile interview was used in qualitative method. The results revealed that 5 popular children obtained from peer matrix of peer nomination were liked most by peers. The Results indicated that popular children gave effects on peers and school environment. Popular children influenced their peers and school environment in pro-social behaviour, leadership, and academic achievement. Meanwhile, besides in academic achievement homeroom teachers also agreed on the effects of popular children in pro-social behaviour.

Expert officer perceptions of de-escalation in policing

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine perceptions of de-escalation among police officers who were nominated by peers as the most skilled at this strategy. Design/methodology/approach A peer nomination process identified eight skilled de-escalators in one department. Interviews were conducted with the officers individually. Additionally, in a focus group, the officers watched and debriefed body-worn camera videos for themes related to de-escalation. Findings Officers defined de-escalation as bringing calm to a conflict using the least amount of force possible. They said it could also be used preventatively. They identified de-escalation tactics, characteristics of skilled de-escalators and situations in which de-escalation is less effective. Originality/value This study initiates research into a much discussed but rarely researched topic. Future studies should continue to work toward a definition of de-escalation and understand how it can be used in policing to reduce violence, protect life and enhance police legitimacy.