Learning environments can support the development of foundational knowledge and promote children's attitudes toward learning and school. This study explores the relation between school enjoyment and general knowledge from preschool (2016-2017) to kindergarten (2017-2018) in 1359 children (M[subscript age] = 55, 61 months, female = 50%; 58.5%…

This 2-year longitudinal study examined relations between enjoyment of learning in Chinese and mathematics, two major subjects in Chinese schools, and indexes of school performance. The participants included 1041 students (501 boys) initially in third, fifth, and seventh grades (mean age = 10.49 years) in China. Data on enjoyment of Chinese and…

Does children's bias toward their own groups reflect egocentrism or social understanding? After being categorized as belonging to 1 of 2 fictitious groups, 157 six- to ten-year-olds evaluated group members and expressed preferences among neutral items. Children who expected the in-group to share their item preferences (egocentric social…

The high school transition was examined in an ethnically diverse, urban sample of 1,979 adolescents, followed from 7th to 10th grade (M[subscript age] = 14.6, SD = 0.37 in 7th grade). Twice annually, data were gathered on adolescents' perceptions of school climate, psychological functioning, and academic behaviors. Piecewise growth modeling…

Evidence indicates that peer victimization is predictive of later maladjustment, but the mechanisms by which harassment impairs development have yet to be identified. The objectives of this study were (a) to discern normative trends in peer victimization experiences and self- and peer perceptions during preadolescence and (b) to investigate…