Social-emotional competence and friendships: prosocial behaviour and lack of behavioural self-regulation as predictors of quantity and quality of friendships in middle childhood
Social-emotional competence and friendships: prosocial behaviour and lack of behavioural self-regulation as predictors of quantity and quality of friendships in middle childhood
Main Article Content
Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the follow-up effects of certain components of children?s social-emotional competence (e.g., prosocial behaviour and lack of behavioural self-regulation) and characteristics of friendship in terms of positive and negative qualities and extent of friendship network. Participants included 177 children attending two primary schools in North-West Italy. During the first wave, they ranged in age from 6 to 9 years (M=7.10, SD=0.38; 48% female). The second wave was collected one year later. Structural equation modelling indicated that prosocial behaviour was positively associated with both qualitatively and quantitatively positive aspects of friendships: children higher in prosocial behaviours were also higher in positive quality of friendship and in number of friends than the others. Furthermore, the lack of behavioural self-regulation was positively associated with negative quality of friendship, meaning that children higher in the lack of self-regulation were also higher in negative quality of friendships as conflicts. These associations did not vary by genders.
References
Batson, C.D. & Powell, A.A. (2003). Altruism and prosocial behavior. In I.B. Weiner, D. Freedheim, K.T. Millon & M.J. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of Psychology: Personality and Social Psychology (pp. 463-484). New York: John Wiley.
Baumgartner, E. (2008). Having Friends in Infancy and in Adolescence: Characteristics, functions, Risk and Protection Factors. Rassegna di Psicologia, 2(24), 11-30.
Bentler, P.M. (1990). Comparative fit indexes in structural models. Psychological Bulletin, 107, 238-246.
Bentler, P.M. & Bonett, D.G. (1980). Significance tests and goodness of fit in the analysis of covariance structures. Psychological Bulletin, 88, 588-606.
Berndt, T.J. (2002). Friendship Quality and Social Development. Current Direction in Psychological Science, 11, 7-10.
Berndt, T.J. (1981). Effect of Friendship on prosocial intention and behaviour. Child Development, 52(2), 636-643.
Berndt, T.J. (2004). Children?s friendships: Shifts over a Half-Century in perspectives on their development and their effects. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 50, 206-223.
Berndt, T.J., Hawkins, J.A. & Hoyle, S.G.(1986). Changes in Friendship during a School Year: Effects on Children's and Adolescents' Impressions of Friendship and sharing with friends. Child Development, 57(5), 1284-1297.
Berti, A.E. & Bombi, A.S. (2005). La media fanciullezza [Middle childhood]. In A.E. Berti & A.S. Bombi (a cura di). Corso di Psicologia dello Sviluppo. Dalla nascita all’adolescenza [Course of Developmental Psychology. From birth to adolescence] (pp. 231-322). Bologna, IT: Il Mulino.
Biederman, J. (1998). Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a life-span perspective. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 59(7), 4-16.
Browne, M.W. & Cudeck, R. (1993). Alternative ways of assessing model fit. In K.A. Bollen & J.S. Long (Eds.), Testing structural equation models (pp. 136-162). London: Sage.
Buhrmester, D. & Furman, W. (1987). The development of companionship and intimacy, Child Development, 58, 1101-1113.
Bukowski, W.M., Hoza, B. & Boivin, M. (1993). Popularity, friendship and emotional adjustment during early adolescence. In B. Laursen (Ed.), Close friendships in adolescence (pp 2337). San Francisco CA: Jossey-Bass Inc.
Bukowski, W.M., Hoza, B. & Boivin, M. (1994). Measuring friendship quality during pre- and early adolescence: the development and psychometric properties of the Friendship Quality Scale. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 11, 471-484.
Bukowski, W.M., Newcomb, A.F. & Hartup, W.W.(1996). The Company They Keep: Friendships in Childhood and Adolescence. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Burk, W.J. & Laursen, B. (2005). Adolescent perceptions of friendship and their association with individual adjustment. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 29,156-164.
Caprara, G.V. & Pastorelli, C. (1993). Early emotional instability, prosocial behavior, and aggression. Some methodological aspects. European Journal of Personality, 7, 19-36.
Ciairano, S., Rabaglietti, E., Roggero, A., Bonino S. & Beyers, W. (2007) Pattern of adolescent friendships, psychological adjustment and antisocial behavior: the moderating role of family stress and friendship reciprocity. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 31(5), 419-428.
Cillessen, A., Jiang, X.L., West, T. & Laszkowski, D.K. (2005). Predictors of dyadic friendship quality in adolescence. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 29(2), 165172.
Clark, K.E. & Ladd, G.W. (2000). Connectedness and autonomy support in parent-child relationships: Links to children's socioemotional orientation and peer relationships. Developmental Psychology, 36, 485-498.
Clark, M.L. & Drewry, D.L (1985). Similarity and reciprocity in the friendships of elementary school children. Child Study Journal, 15(4), 251-264.
Cook, W.L. & Kenny, D.A. (2005). The actor-partner interdependence model: A model of bidirectional effects in developmental studies. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 29, 101-109.
Denham, S.A., Mckinley, M., Couchoud, E.A. & Holt, R. (1990). Emotional and Behavioral Predictors of Preschool Peer Ratings. Child Development, 61, 1145- 1152.
Dunn, J. (2004). Children's Friendships: the beginnings of Intimacy. Oxford, UK: Blackwell.
Fonzi, A. & Tani, F. (1996). Dall?infanzia alla preadolescenza: continuità e discontinuità nello sviluppo dei legami di amicizia [From infancy to early adolescence: continuity and discontinuity in the development of friendship bonds]. Età Evolutiva, 54, 89-94.
Güro?lu, B., van Lieshout, C.F.M., Haselager, G.J.T. & Scholte, R.H. (2007). Similarity and complementarity of behavioral profiles of friendship types and types of friends: Friendships and psychosocial adjustment.
Journal of Research on Adolescence, 17(2), 357-386.
Hartup, W.W. (1993). Adolescents and their friends. In B. Laursen (Ed), Close Friendships in Adolescence (pp. 3-22). San Francisco CA: Jossey-Bass Inc.
Hartup, W.W. (1996). The company they keep: Friendships and their developmental significance. Child Development, 67, 1-13.
Hartup, W.W. & Stevens, N. (1997). Friendship and adaptation in the life course. Psychological Bulletin, 121, 355-370.
Haselager, G.J.T., Hartup, W.W, van Lieshout, C.F.M. & Riksen-Walraven, M.J.A. (1998). Similarities between Friends and Nonfriends in Middle Childhood. Child Development, 69(4), 1198-1208.
Howes, C. (1996). The Earliest Friendships. In W.M. Bukowski, A.F. Newcomb & W.W. Hartup (Eds.), The Company They Keep: Friendship in Childhood and Adolescence (pp. 66-86). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Hu, L. & Bentler, P.M. (1998). Fit indices in covariance structure modeling: Sensitivity to underparameterized model misspecification. Psychological Bulletin, 3, 424-453.
ISTAT [National Institute of Statistics] (2007). Annuario statistico italiano 2007 [Italian Statistical Yearbook 2007]. Rome: ISTAT.
Kandel, D.B. (1978). Similarity in real life adolescent friendship pairs. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 36, 306-312.
Kashy, D.A. & Kenny, D.A. (1999). The analysis of data from dyads and groups. In H.T. Reis &
C.M. Judd (Eds.), Handbook of research methods in social and personality psychology (pp. 451-477). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
La Fontana, K.M. & Cillessen, A.H.N. (2002). Children?s Perception of Popular and Unpopular Peers: A Multimethod Assessment, Developmental Psychology, 38(5), 635-647.
Lazarsfeld, P. & Merton, R.K. (1954). Friendship as a Social Process: A Substantive and Methodological Analysis. In M. Berger, T. Abel & C.H. Page (Eds.), Freedom and Control in Modern Society (pp. 18-66). New York: Van Nostrand.
Lewis, M. & Haviland, J.M. (1993). Handbook of Emotions. New York: Guilford Press.
Livesley, W. & Bromley, D.B. (1973). Person Perception in Childhood and Adolescence. New York: Wiley.
Little, R.J.A. & Rubin, D.B. (2002). Statistical analysis with missing data (2th ed.). New York: John Wiley.
Martin, C.L. & Fabes, R.A. (2001). The stability and consequences of young children?s same-sex peer interactions. Developmental Psychology, 37(3), 431-446.
McGuire, K.D. & Weisz, J.R. (1982). Social Cognition and Behavior Correlates of Preadolescent Chumship. Child Development, 53(6) 1478-1484.
McNamara, B.C. & Wentzel, K.R. (2006). Friend influence on prosocial behavior: The role of motivational factors and friendship characteristics. Developmental Psychology, 42(1), 153-163.
Muthén, L.K. & Muthén, B.O. (2006). Mplus users guide. Los Angeles, CA: Muthén and Muthén.
Newcomb, A.F. & Bagwell, C.L. (1995). Children „s friendship relations: a meta-analyitic review, Psychological Bulletin, 117, 306-347.
Popp, D., Laursen, B., Kerr, M., Stattin, H. & Burk W.J. (2008). Modeling homophily over time with an Actor-Partner Interdependence Model. Developmental Psychology, 44, 10281039.
Rose, A.J. & Smith, R.L. (2009). Sex difference in peer relationships. In Rubin K.H., Bukowski
W.M. & Laursen B. (Eds.), Handbook of peer interactions, relationships and group (pp. 379-383). New York- London: The Guilford Press.
Rose-Krasnor, L. & Denham, S (2009). Social-emotional competence in early childhood. In Rubin K.H., Bukowski W.M. & Laursen B. (Eds.), Handbook of peer interactions, relationships and grou (pp. 162-179). New York- London: The Guilford Press.
Rothbart, M.K. & Bates, J.E. (2006). Temperament. In N. Eisemberg, W. Damon & R.M. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of Child Psychology: Social, Emotional, and Personality Development (Vol. 3, pp. 99-166). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
Rubin K., Bukowski W. & Parker, J. (2006). Peers interaction, relationships, and groups. In N. Eisemberg, W. Damon & R.M. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of Child Psychology: Social, Emotional, and Personality Development (Vol. 3, pp. 571-645). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
Schafer, J.L. & Graham, J.W. (2002). Missing data: Our view of the state of the art. Psychological Methods, 7, 147-177.
Shieldsa, A.N., Cicchettia, D. & Ryan, R.M. (1994). The development of emotional and beha
vioral self-regulation and social competence among maltreated school-age children.
Development and Psychopathology, 6, 57-75.
Smorti, A. (2001). Lo sviluppo sociale [Social development]. In A. Fonzi (a cura di), Manu
ale di Psicologia dello Sviluppo [Handbook of Developmental Psychology] (pp. 230-302). Firenze, IT: Giunti.
Tucker, L.R. & Lewis, C. (1973). The reliability coefficients for maximum likelihood factor analysis. Psychometrica, 3, 1-10.
Yeates, K.O., Bigler, E.D., Dennis, M., Gherardt, C.A., Rubin, K.H., Stancin, T., Taylor, H.G. & Vannatta, K. (2007). Social outcomes in childhood brain disorder: A heuristic integration of social neuroscience and developmental psychology. Psychological Bulletin, 133, 535-556.
Youniss, J. (1980). Parents and peers in social development: A Sullivan-Piaget perspective. Chicago IL: University of Chicago Press.
Baumgartner, E. (2008). Having Friends in Infancy and in Adolescence: Characteristics, functions, Risk and Protection Factors. Rassegna di Psicologia, 2(24), 11-30.
Bentler, P.M. (1990). Comparative fit indexes in structural models. Psychological Bulletin, 107, 238-246.
Bentler, P.M. & Bonett, D.G. (1980). Significance tests and goodness of fit in the analysis of covariance structures. Psychological Bulletin, 88, 588-606.
Berndt, T.J. (2002). Friendship Quality and Social Development. Current Direction in Psychological Science, 11, 7-10.
Berndt, T.J. (1981). Effect of Friendship on prosocial intention and behaviour. Child Development, 52(2), 636-643.
Berndt, T.J. (2004). Children?s friendships: Shifts over a Half-Century in perspectives on their development and their effects. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 50, 206-223.
Berndt, T.J., Hawkins, J.A. & Hoyle, S.G.(1986). Changes in Friendship during a School Year: Effects on Children's and Adolescents' Impressions of Friendship and sharing with friends. Child Development, 57(5), 1284-1297.
Berti, A.E. & Bombi, A.S. (2005). La media fanciullezza [Middle childhood]. In A.E. Berti & A.S. Bombi (a cura di). Corso di Psicologia dello Sviluppo. Dalla nascita all’adolescenza [Course of Developmental Psychology. From birth to adolescence] (pp. 231-322). Bologna, IT: Il Mulino.
Biederman, J. (1998). Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a life-span perspective. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, 59(7), 4-16.
Browne, M.W. & Cudeck, R. (1993). Alternative ways of assessing model fit. In K.A. Bollen & J.S. Long (Eds.), Testing structural equation models (pp. 136-162). London: Sage.
Buhrmester, D. & Furman, W. (1987). The development of companionship and intimacy, Child Development, 58, 1101-1113.
Bukowski, W.M., Hoza, B. & Boivin, M. (1993). Popularity, friendship and emotional adjustment during early adolescence. In B. Laursen (Ed.), Close friendships in adolescence (pp 2337). San Francisco CA: Jossey-Bass Inc.
Bukowski, W.M., Hoza, B. & Boivin, M. (1994). Measuring friendship quality during pre- and early adolescence: the development and psychometric properties of the Friendship Quality Scale. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 11, 471-484.
Bukowski, W.M., Newcomb, A.F. & Hartup, W.W.(1996). The Company They Keep: Friendships in Childhood and Adolescence. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Burk, W.J. & Laursen, B. (2005). Adolescent perceptions of friendship and their association with individual adjustment. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 29,156-164.
Caprara, G.V. & Pastorelli, C. (1993). Early emotional instability, prosocial behavior, and aggression. Some methodological aspects. European Journal of Personality, 7, 19-36.
Ciairano, S., Rabaglietti, E., Roggero, A., Bonino S. & Beyers, W. (2007) Pattern of adolescent friendships, psychological adjustment and antisocial behavior: the moderating role of family stress and friendship reciprocity. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 31(5), 419-428.
Cillessen, A., Jiang, X.L., West, T. & Laszkowski, D.K. (2005). Predictors of dyadic friendship quality in adolescence. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 29(2), 165172.
Clark, K.E. & Ladd, G.W. (2000). Connectedness and autonomy support in parent-child relationships: Links to children's socioemotional orientation and peer relationships. Developmental Psychology, 36, 485-498.
Clark, M.L. & Drewry, D.L (1985). Similarity and reciprocity in the friendships of elementary school children. Child Study Journal, 15(4), 251-264.
Cook, W.L. & Kenny, D.A. (2005). The actor-partner interdependence model: A model of bidirectional effects in developmental studies. International Journal of Behavioral Development, 29, 101-109.
Denham, S.A., Mckinley, M., Couchoud, E.A. & Holt, R. (1990). Emotional and Behavioral Predictors of Preschool Peer Ratings. Child Development, 61, 1145- 1152.
Dunn, J. (2004). Children's Friendships: the beginnings of Intimacy. Oxford, UK: Blackwell.
Fonzi, A. & Tani, F. (1996). Dall?infanzia alla preadolescenza: continuità e discontinuità nello sviluppo dei legami di amicizia [From infancy to early adolescence: continuity and discontinuity in the development of friendship bonds]. Età Evolutiva, 54, 89-94.
Güro?lu, B., van Lieshout, C.F.M., Haselager, G.J.T. & Scholte, R.H. (2007). Similarity and complementarity of behavioral profiles of friendship types and types of friends: Friendships and psychosocial adjustment.
Journal of Research on Adolescence, 17(2), 357-386.
Hartup, W.W. (1993). Adolescents and their friends. In B. Laursen (Ed), Close Friendships in Adolescence (pp. 3-22). San Francisco CA: Jossey-Bass Inc.
Hartup, W.W. (1996). The company they keep: Friendships and their developmental significance. Child Development, 67, 1-13.
Hartup, W.W. & Stevens, N. (1997). Friendship and adaptation in the life course. Psychological Bulletin, 121, 355-370.
Haselager, G.J.T., Hartup, W.W, van Lieshout, C.F.M. & Riksen-Walraven, M.J.A. (1998). Similarities between Friends and Nonfriends in Middle Childhood. Child Development, 69(4), 1198-1208.
Howes, C. (1996). The Earliest Friendships. In W.M. Bukowski, A.F. Newcomb & W.W. Hartup (Eds.), The Company They Keep: Friendship in Childhood and Adolescence (pp. 66-86). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Hu, L. & Bentler, P.M. (1998). Fit indices in covariance structure modeling: Sensitivity to underparameterized model misspecification. Psychological Bulletin, 3, 424-453.
ISTAT [National Institute of Statistics] (2007). Annuario statistico italiano 2007 [Italian Statistical Yearbook 2007]. Rome: ISTAT.
Kandel, D.B. (1978). Similarity in real life adolescent friendship pairs. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 36, 306-312.
Kashy, D.A. & Kenny, D.A. (1999). The analysis of data from dyads and groups. In H.T. Reis &
C.M. Judd (Eds.), Handbook of research methods in social and personality psychology (pp. 451-477). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
La Fontana, K.M. & Cillessen, A.H.N. (2002). Children?s Perception of Popular and Unpopular Peers: A Multimethod Assessment, Developmental Psychology, 38(5), 635-647.
Lazarsfeld, P. & Merton, R.K. (1954). Friendship as a Social Process: A Substantive and Methodological Analysis. In M. Berger, T. Abel & C.H. Page (Eds.), Freedom and Control in Modern Society (pp. 18-66). New York: Van Nostrand.
Lewis, M. & Haviland, J.M. (1993). Handbook of Emotions. New York: Guilford Press.
Livesley, W. & Bromley, D.B. (1973). Person Perception in Childhood and Adolescence. New York: Wiley.
Little, R.J.A. & Rubin, D.B. (2002). Statistical analysis with missing data (2th ed.). New York: John Wiley.
Martin, C.L. & Fabes, R.A. (2001). The stability and consequences of young children?s same-sex peer interactions. Developmental Psychology, 37(3), 431-446.
McGuire, K.D. & Weisz, J.R. (1982). Social Cognition and Behavior Correlates of Preadolescent Chumship. Child Development, 53(6) 1478-1484.
McNamara, B.C. & Wentzel, K.R. (2006). Friend influence on prosocial behavior: The role of motivational factors and friendship characteristics. Developmental Psychology, 42(1), 153-163.
Muthén, L.K. & Muthén, B.O. (2006). Mplus users guide. Los Angeles, CA: Muthén and Muthén.
Newcomb, A.F. & Bagwell, C.L. (1995). Children „s friendship relations: a meta-analyitic review, Psychological Bulletin, 117, 306-347.
Popp, D., Laursen, B., Kerr, M., Stattin, H. & Burk W.J. (2008). Modeling homophily over time with an Actor-Partner Interdependence Model. Developmental Psychology, 44, 10281039.
Rose, A.J. & Smith, R.L. (2009). Sex difference in peer relationships. In Rubin K.H., Bukowski
W.M. & Laursen B. (Eds.), Handbook of peer interactions, relationships and group (pp. 379-383). New York- London: The Guilford Press.
Rose-Krasnor, L. & Denham, S (2009). Social-emotional competence in early childhood. In Rubin K.H., Bukowski W.M. & Laursen B. (Eds.), Handbook of peer interactions, relationships and grou (pp. 162-179). New York- London: The Guilford Press.
Rothbart, M.K. & Bates, J.E. (2006). Temperament. In N. Eisemberg, W. Damon & R.M. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of Child Psychology: Social, Emotional, and Personality Development (Vol. 3, pp. 99-166). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
Rubin K., Bukowski W. & Parker, J. (2006). Peers interaction, relationships, and groups. In N. Eisemberg, W. Damon & R.M. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of Child Psychology: Social, Emotional, and Personality Development (Vol. 3, pp. 571-645). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
Schafer, J.L. & Graham, J.W. (2002). Missing data: Our view of the state of the art. Psychological Methods, 7, 147-177.
Shieldsa, A.N., Cicchettia, D. & Ryan, R.M. (1994). The development of emotional and beha
vioral self-regulation and social competence among maltreated school-age children.
Development and Psychopathology, 6, 57-75.
Smorti, A. (2001). Lo sviluppo sociale [Social development]. In A. Fonzi (a cura di), Manu
ale di Psicologia dello Sviluppo [Handbook of Developmental Psychology] (pp. 230-302). Firenze, IT: Giunti.
Tucker, L.R. & Lewis, C. (1973). The reliability coefficients for maximum likelihood factor analysis. Psychometrica, 3, 1-10.
Yeates, K.O., Bigler, E.D., Dennis, M., Gherardt, C.A., Rubin, K.H., Stancin, T., Taylor, H.G. & Vannatta, K. (2007). Social outcomes in childhood brain disorder: A heuristic integration of social neuroscience and developmental psychology. Psychological Bulletin, 133, 535-556.
Youniss, J. (1980). Parents and peers in social development: A Sullivan-Piaget perspective. Chicago IL: University of Chicago Press.