The goal of this study was to examine how different types of social experiences in kindergarten relate to Grade 1 academic achievement, while controlling for possible genetic and shared environmental influences through the use of the monozygotic (MZ) twin difference method. Social experiences in kindergarten included relationship quality with the…

Classmates' academic skill level (peer effects) is emerging as an important predictor of individual student achievement, particularly in the early grades. However, less is known about the influence of peer effects with regard to classmates' self-regulation skills and whether they are associated with students' academic gains. Examining this is the…

Tests a model that posited that three diverse sets of academic outcomes for children were uniquely determined by psychological, family, and peer factors. Results reveal that early verbal skills are unique predictors of academic outcomes, and that the relative importance of psychological and peer factors depends on the kind of academic outcome of…

Using a prospective design spanning 17 years, the authors studied in a sample of 231 boys and girls the predictive links of verbal abuse by the teacher during childhood to high-school graduation and behavioral and emotional problems in young adulthood, as well as the putative mediating role of individuals' generalized and domain-specific…