Previous research has supported the importance of the interaction between family and school contexts for student adjustment to school. This study aimed to investigate the mediating role of school engagement and academic self-concept in relation to family adaptability/cohesion, social acceptability and school adjustment. A sample of 268 5th- and…

Mathematics anxiety negatively impacts cognitive processing, performance, expectations, motivation, and future choices. However, research has not examined patterns in students' mathematics anxiety levels over time. The current study addresses this gap by exploring group-based trajectories in mathematics anxiety during the transition to junior high…

This study examined group differences by grade (fifth graders in elementary school and sixth graders in middle school) and gender in academic (behavioral and emotional engagement, academic self-concept, and worry) and socio-emotional adjustment (self-esteem, social satisfaction, social self-concept, and worry). Self-report data were collected from…

The often observed decline in students' self-perceptions across transition to secondary school after grade 6 is often attributed to students' entry to puberty. This study aims to examine whether lowered self-perceptions can be observed after transition in Germany which occurs after grade 4 and thus takes place before puberty. Fifth graders (N =…

Prior research has identified ways in which parents and teachers contribute to learned helpless responses to failure, but little is known about the role that interactions with peers might play. In this study, the conversations of fourth- through sixth- grade children and their friends were observed after children experienced an achievement-related…

This research explored the experiences of gifted girls transitioning from elementary school to sixth and seventh grade. The current literature indicates that gifted girls often struggle emotionally during this transition. Seven research participants were selected and interviewed over a four-month period. Grounded theory methodology was used to…

This study examined the mediating role of self-blaming attributions on peer victimization-maladjustment relations in middle school and the moderating role of classroom ethnic diversity. Latino and African American 6th grade participants (N = 1105, 56% female) were recruited from middle schools in which they were either members of the numerical…

Two studies investigated the proposition that social achievement goals (different orientations toward social competence) are an important aspect of young adolescents' social motivation. Study 1 (N = 153 6th-grade students) established that different orientations toward developing or demonstrating social competence can be seen in young adolescents'…

The objectives of the study were to examine the characteristics of non-referred children with behaviour difficulties (BD) (such as verbal and physical aggression towards children and objects), aged 9-12 years and attending mainstream schools, and to compare them with children with no BD. The second objective was to evaluate the contribution of a…

This is a comparison study of 244 early adolescents attending sixth grade at either an urban elementary school or an urban middle school. Utilizing four data collection instruments, it compares the adolescent groups' degrees of loneliness, levels of positive self-concept, academic competence, problem behaviors, and social skills. Results indicate…

An ethnically diverse sample of 6th-grade students completed peer nomination procedures that were used to create subgroups of students with reputations as victims, aggressors, aggressive victims, and socially adjusted (neither aggressive nor victimized). Self-report data on psychological adjustment, attributions for peer harassment, and perceived…