It has long been assumed that children and adolescents want to be with their peers and therefore make active efforts to engage with them. However, a sizable minority of youth avoid peers for internal reasons (e.g., anxiety, preferences for solitude) or because they are socially withdrawn. Although by definition, withdrawn youth tend to stay away…

Amidst essentialising discourses that circulate through educational spaces (e.g. that 'boys will be boys' or that boys are inherently aggressive), there is a need for more research that explores adolescent identities as complex and relational. This study considers the affective-discursive practices that both constrain and enable teenage boys to…

We used latent growth curve analysis to extend research on associations between early puberty and adverse peer relations by examining the role of pubertal timing in the developmental trajectories of peer victimization and offending from early- to mid-adolescence. We made use of three-wave longitudinal data collected annually from a cohort of…

The current study focused on the relationship between body dissatisfaction and depressive symptoms on the threshold of adolescence. We aimed to investigate the role of body dissatisfaction in gender differences in depressive symptoms, as well as the impact of social support from peers and parents. Mediation and moderation analyses were based on…

Achieving a clear view of one's personality is a challenging but crucial developmental task during adolescence, which has enduring influences. This task might be harder if significant others see individuals differently from how the adolescents see themselves. Supporting this, the looking-glass-self theory suggests that significant others…

The present study examined influences of sixth-grade student-reported parent educational involvement on early adolescent peer group affiliations at seventh and eighth grade. In addition, student gender and ethnicity were explored as possible moderators. Drawn from a large effectiveness trial, participants in this study were 5,802 early adolescents…

This study examined the influence of peer crowd affiliation on subsequent engagement, peer classroom support, and school belonging during middle school (N=202, 61% females). Students self-identified actual and aspiring peer crowd affiliation (Athletes, Academics, Others) in the fall, and engagement, peer support, and belonging in the fall and…

The current study investigated the development of global and domain (academic, physical, same-sex peer relationship, opposite-sex peer relationship) self-esteem from age 10 to 16 in a sample of Mexican-origin adolescents. Participants' (N = 674) responses on the Self-Description Questionnaire (SDQ; Marsh, 2005) II-S showed moderate rank-order…

How important is the role that the different social institutions play in adolescents' emotional development? This study alludes to the social capital framework to explain the influence that the family, school and peer relations have on the social-emotional competencies (SEC) of adolescents, immigrants and locals living in Southeastern Spain. Three…

Limited research exists on the slut labeling process, a key means of enforcing rules around appropriate female sexuality. This study explores that process through qualitative interviews with 44 adolescent girls in Travis County, Texas. Labeling girls as sluts or hos was pervasive and was based on a number of factors beyond sexual behavior,…

Stressors have been identified as significant vulnerability factors in the development of adolescents' depression. The present study focused on the relationship between depressive symptoms and two types of interpersonal stressors in the schoolyard, namely teacher-student interaction stressors (TSIS) and peer interaction stressors (PIS). More…

This study prospectively examined pubertal timing and peer victimization as interactive predictors of depressive symptoms in a racially diverse community sample of adolescents. We also expanded on past research by assessing body esteem as a mechanism by which pubertal timing and peer victimization confer risk for depression. In all, 218…

Researchers have made significant progress in the investigation of how physiological measures can inform the study of adolescent peer functioning, including peer processes involving antisocial behavior, victimization, and peer social status. This paper highlights how the inclusion of physiological processes in research studies can address several…

The current study used developmental trajectories to examine the relationship between internalising and externalising behaviours and victimisation over the transition period from primary to secondary school. Data were collected using a self-completion questionnaire four times over 3 years from 3,459 students aged 11-14 years. Students were tracked…

Chronic illnesses and disabilities may impair the attainment of age-typical developmental tasks, such as forming relationships with peers and gaining autonomy. Based on a systematic search in electronic databases and cross-referencing, 447 quantitative empirical studies were included which compared the attainment of developmental tasks of…