What are the common types of social goals endorsed by early adolescents and how are they related to their school adjustment? This article discusses the importance of assessing students' social goals during the early adolescent developmental period when peers become increasingly important and youth experience tremendous changes to the school…

What are the common types of social goals endorsed by early adolescents and how are they related to their school adjustment? This article discusses the importance of assessing students' social goals during the early adolescent developmental period when peers become increasingly important and youth experience tremendous changes to the school…

The authors begin their commentary by saying that looking at the phenotypical characteristics of a school shooting, which focus on the perpetrators' experiences in school contexts seems to be overdue. In spite of methodological problems, the studies involved in the review seem to paint a clear picture with regard to social ostracism and harassment…

The authors begin their commentary by saying that Sommer, Leuschner, and Scheithauer (2014) did an admirable job of reviewing and integrating research on school shootings across a broad array of studies that relied on varied conceptualizations, operational definitions, coding strategies, and samples of shootings. The authors agree with Sommer et…

This systematic review investigated the relationship between peer and/or friend variables and physical activity among adolescents by synthesising cross-sectional, longitudinal, and experimental research conducted in the US. Seven electronic databases were searched to identify related articles published within the last 10 years and the articles…

This article examines the dynamics of peer relationships across the first 2 grades of Dutch junior high schools (average age 13-14). Specifically, we studied how gender and compositional changes in classrooms structured the changes in peer relationships between the 2 grades. Expectations were derived from past research, and we tested whether these…

Because the mechanism of harm used in social aggression generally involves the manipulation of peer relationships, it is important to consider its social correlates. The current article uses social dominance theory as a frame to review developmental research on social aggression perpetration and three indicators of social position: sociometric…

There has been a scarcity of research studies addressing the dilemmas of peer relationships confronting gifted adolescent females. In this study, the peer relationships of nine mathematically gifted adolescent females living in Taiwan are explored using a qualitative multicase study. Data analysis revealed six compelling themes: a proclivity for…

We examined associations between children's sociometric status and (a) observed parental feedback as well as (b) child aggression. Participants were 94 children ages 6-10 (64 male; 44 with ADHD) and their parents. Children's peer status, parental feedback to their children, and child aggression were all assessed during lab-based playgroups of four…

We used social relations modeling (SRM; mixed modeling and SOREMO) to examine liking among peers ("affective preferences") in relation to gender and socioemotional problems. Participants (N = 278, age 10 to 13) rated how much they liked each other and reported depressive symptoms, negative beliefs, and social worries. Boys and girls were equally…

Although peer nominations provide invaluable data on social status and reputations of classmates, the large size and organizational structure of secondary schools pose a practical challenge to utilizing nomination methods. Particularly problematic is determining the appropriate reference group when students are no longer in self-contained…

This study addresses the convergent validity of a new teacher questionnaire to assess the social participation of students with special needs in regular primary schools. The Social Participation Questionnaire (SPQ) consists of four subscales representing four key themes of social participation: friendships/relationships, contacts/interactions,…

This study was designed to investigate the association of quality of Portuguese inclusive preschool classrooms with the social acceptance of children with disabilities. Sixty-four inclusive preschool classrooms from 28 randomly selected school groups from the district of Lisbon participated in this study. Classroom quality was not associated with…

This descriptive study examined text and traditional bullying in New Zealand (NZ), and the relationship between text bullying and traditional bullying, and feeling unsafe at school. A self-report online survey assessed the frequency of bullying among 1169 15 year old secondary students, for five categories of bullying: text messages, rumors,…

This study addresses the relationship between the acceptance of students with disabilities by their peers and their self-concept. Research shows that level of acceptance and self-concept are moderately related. Students with disabilities not accepted by their peers in regular classrooms thus run the risk of developing low self-concept. It is…