This longitudinal study, conducted among a sample of Finnish primary-school children, examined the proposition that a single high-quality relationship (either with a teacher or a parent) can buffer against adjustment problems. Teachers rated the externalizing problems and prosocial behaviors of 378 children in Grade 1 and again in Grade 2.…

The relation between self-concept and academic achievement was examined in 39 independent and longitudinal samples through the integration of meta-analysis and path analysis procedures. For relations with more than 3 independent samples, the mean observed correlations ranged from 0.20 to 0.27 between prior self-concept and subsequent academic…

The present study is a four-year longitudinal study examining the important predictors of writing of 340 Chinese children in elementary grades. Children's transcription skills (handwriting skills and spelling), and syntactic skills in grade 1 were significant predictors of text writing in grade 1-4 while ideation in grade 1 only contributed to…

The main purpose of this longitudinal study was to investigate the role of motivational climates, perceived competence and motivational regulations as antecedents of self-reported physical activity during junior high school years. The participants included 237 Finnish students (101 girls, 136 boys) that were 13 years old at the first stage of the…

Threat appraisals--individuals' perceptions of how stressful situations may threaten their well-being--are an important but understudied mechanism that could explain links between peer victimization and adjustment. The goal of the present study was to examine relationships between physical and relational victimization by peers, threats to the…

(This study examines the directionality of the associations among cognitive assets (IQ, academic achievement), motivational beliefs (academic self-concept, task values), and educational and occupational aspirations over time from late adolescence (Grade 10) into early adulthood (5 years post high school). Participants were from a nationally…

This study examined cross-lagged associations between positive teacher and peer relations and academic skill development. Reading and math skills were tested among 625 students in kindergarten and Grade 4. Teacher reports of positive affect toward each student and classmate reports of peer acceptance were gathered in Grades 1-3. The results…

The purpose of this study was to examine the risk and protective factors of peer victimization among young children with disabilities. This study analyzed data from the Pre-Elementary Education Longitudinal Study (n =1,130) to test a path model that included child, family, and school characteristics at Year 1 and peer-relation difficulties and…

This research uses life course perspective concepts of linked lives and historical time and place to examine the multigenerational effects of relocation experiences on Indigenous families. Data were collected from a longitudinal study currently underway on four American Indian reservations in the Northern Midwest and four Canadian First Nation…

Based on current theories of depression, reciprocal links between loneliness and depressive symptoms are expected to occur. However, longitudinal studies on adolescent samples are scarce and have yielded conflicting results. The present five-wave longitudinal study from mid- to late adolescence (N = 428, M age at T1 = 15.22 years; 47% female)…

Several facets of the undergraduate experience have been linked with the importance students assign to prosocial values (e.g., helping people in need), including academic major, exposure to social and cultural diversity, community service, and a prosocial institutional ethos. However, these factors have not been examined within a single framework…

This study aimed to support the theory of popularity contagion, which posits that popularity spreads among friends spontaneously and regardless of behavioral changes. Peer nominations of status and behavior were collected annually between 6th and 12th grades from a total of 1062 adolescents. Longitudinal hypotheses were mostly supported using path…

This study examined whether the longitudinal links between mothers' use of spanking and children's externalizing behaviors are moderated by family race/ethnicity, as would be predicted by cultural normativeness theory, once mean differences in frequency of use are controlled. A nationally representative sample of White, Black, Hispanic, and Asian…

Research Findings: This study explored the role Head Start teachers' (n = 355) depressive symptoms play in their interactions with children and in children's (n = 2,203) social-emotional development, specifically changes in children's problem behaviors and social skills as reported by parents and teachers during the preschool year. Results of the…

The high risk of burnout in the social work profession is well established, but little is known about burnout's impact on the physical health of social workers. This article examines the relationship between burnout and physical health, using data from a longitudinal study of social workers. California-registered social workers (N = 406) were…