The hypothesis that the concurrent associations between friendship features and friendship satisfaction are moderated by security-related experiences within the family was examined with two sets of analyses conducted with a sample of fifth- and sixth-grade students (M = 10.87, SD = 0.73, range 10-13 years). The main hypothesis of the study was…

Data from 790 older school-age (M[subscript age] = 10.2 years, SD = 1.2 years) girls (N = 427) and boys from Barranquilla, Colombia (N = 449) and Montréal, Canada (N = 331) were used to replicate findings reported by Valdivia et al. (2005). This prior study revealed contextual variations in the association between two measures of social behavior,…

The stability of standard score and probability method sociometric group assignments was examined over a two-year period with an initial group of 334 fifth graders. Popular, neglected, and controversial groups evidenced low stability of group members over intervals of approximately 1, 6, 12, 18, and 24 months. (Author/RH)

Tested the validity of the Friendship Qualities Scale (FQS), which assesses the quality of children's and early adolescents' relationships with their best friends along five aspects of the friendship relation: companionship, conflict, help/aid, security, and closeness. Discusses the dimensions according to the issues related to the measurement of…

Considerable stability was observed on measures of acceptance, rejection, preference, and impact in a one-year longitudinal study of sociometric stability and friendship choice consistency in an early-adolescent peer group. Findings provided new information about patterns of stability in early adolescent peer groups and revealed the need for…

Discusses a model that suggests that popularity and friendship are linked to different forms of adjustment and emotional well-being and emphasizes that friendship is an important mediator between popularity and loneliness. Results of a study that involved 169 early adolescents in fifth and sixth grades supported the model. (BB)

Compared adjustment of 30 young adults who had a stable, reciprocal best friend in fifth grade and 30 who did not. Found that lower peer rejection uniquely predicted overall life status adjustment. Friended preadolescents had higher general self-worth in adulthood, even after controlling for perceived preadolescence competence. Peer rejection and…

Assessed Canadian young adolescents' peer relationships as students moved from grade 6 in small elementary schools to middle-level schools offering grades 7 to 12. Found that girls experienced greater instability in reciprocated friendships than boys. Found that girls, more so than boys, lost old friendships and formed new friendships with…