The study examines students' skills at kindergarten entry and gains in skills across kindergarten through first grade (pre-COVID) predicting literacy, language, math, inhibitory control, and social adjustment in the spring of 4th grade, after schools re-opened. Longitudinal data were collected on students (N=785) who were linguistically diverse…

Peer report of aggression has typically been obtained through peer nominations. The purpose of this study was to identify the extent to which peer nominations and peer ratings identified the same children as aggressive and to explore whether the two methods were equally accurate in identifying children at risk for poor social adjustment.…

The present study examined, within a longitudinal family-informed design and across middle childhood, the predictive associations between preference for solitude and social wariness, two forms of social withdrawal, and peer difficulties. Specifically, preference for solitude, rather than social wariness, was expected to predict peer victimization…

In order to reach gender equity in the gifted population, an affirmative action policy was instituted in Israel to increase the number of girls identified as gifted. The purpose of this study was to compare the self-efficacy beliefs of girls in the top 1.5% (gifted girls (GG)) with those of girls in the top 3% (GG in affirmative action). It was…

The study compared teachers' and parents' views about elementary school children's psychosocial adjustment with and without a history of early grade retention. The sample included retained and non-retained students currently in Grades Two and Four (age range 7.5 to 11.6 years) in Cypriot public schools. The retained students experienced early…

Research Findings: The purpose of this study was to identify the developmental trajectories of impulsive behavior among 378 Finnish children who were followed from kindergarten to 4th grade. In addition to ratings of children's impulsivity, the analyses included measures of motivation, cognitive skills, socioemotional adjustment, and…

The associations between self-perception and attachment orientations and three aspects of children's competence within friendships were examined: "Managing conflict", "seeking support", and "giving support". Questionnaires were completed by 260 4th- and 5th-grade students. Homeroom teachers reported on the children's…

Prior research has demonstrated that victims of peer victimization show reduced psychological adjustment, social adjustment, and physical well-being compared with nonvictims. However, little research has addressed whether this maladjustment continues over the long term. This study examined adjustment in 72 high school students who had participated…

This study examined associations among children's agentic (social influence, status, power) and communal (relationship, affiliation) goals for peer interaction, cognitive and affective responses to hypothetical peer conflict, and teacher-reported achievement and behavior at school ("N" = 367; "M" age = 9.9 years). Agentic goals…

The authors examined whether the adjustment patterns of socially and overtly aggressive preadolescent girls, ages 9 to 11 years, from rural communities differed by ethnicity. Students were administered a series of questionnaires to assess the degree to which girls engaged in various forms of aggression and to assess aggressive girls' social,…

Youth in underserved, urban communities are at risk for a range of negative outcomes related to stress, including social-emotional difficulties, behavior problems, and poor academic performance. Mindfulness-based approaches may improve adjustment among chronically stressed and disadvantaged youth by enhancing self-regulatory capacities. This paper…

Background: Prior studies outside of the UK have shown that peer victimization is negatively associated with school adjustment. Aims: To examine concurrent and short-term longitudinal associations between peer victimization (physical, malicious teasing, deliberate social exclusion, and malicious gossiping) and two measures of school adjustment…

The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that children's hostile attributions and behavioral strategies in response to peer provocation and rebuff situations will depend on the relationship with the target peer (i.e., friend, enemy, neutral). The sample consisted of 144 fourth graders (75 boys and 69 girls; mean age=10.47 years,…

The purpose of this study was to examine uncertainty orientation and its relations with school and psychological adjustment in Chinese children. A sample of elementary school children in P.R. China, aged 10 to 12 years, participated in the study. Data concerning uncertainty orientation, academic performance and socio-emotional adjustment were…

The purpose of this study was to examine the frequency and correlates of cross-racial/ethnic friendships. The sample consisted of 509 (188 African American, 135 European American, 106 Asian American, and 80 Latino) children in 4th grade from 39 classrooms in several public elementary schools. The authors hypothesized that (a) the frequency of…