Being on top versus not dangling at the bottom: Popularity motivation and aggression in youth.

Whereas research on aggression and status motivation in youth has predominantly looked at a promotion focus (striving for popularity), a prevention focus (wanting to avoid low popularity) could also be an important determinant of aggression, as youth who fear low popularity may use strategic aggression to secure their position. The aim of the current study was to develop reliable measures for both popularity motivations, and examine how both motivations are uniquely and jointly related to aggression. Participants were 1123 Dutch secondary school students (M age = 14.4 years, 48% girls), who completed a 3-item measure of striving for high popularity based on existing questionnaires (Li & Wright, 2014; Ojanen et al., 2005), and a 3-item measure of avoiding low popularity consisting of an adapted version of the high popularity items. Aggressive behavior was measured through peer nominations. Motivations were moderately correlated (r = .51), but did not always co-occur within the same person, as 17% of the sample belonged to a cluster that scored low on striving for popularity, but moderately high on avoiding low popularity. When considered simultaneously, striving for high popularity was not related to any type of aggression, whereas avoiding affiliation with unpopular peers was related to strategic aggression. For physical and verbal aggression, gossiping, excluding and bullying, the association of avoiding low popularity with aggression was strongest when youth also strived for high popularity. Future work should take both popularity motivations into account to better understand, predict and intervene on youth's aggression toward peers.

The longitudinal link between popularity, likeability, fear of negative evaluation and social avoidance across adolescence.

This study investigated the longitudinal bidirectional associations between likeability, popularity, fear of negative evaluation, and social avoidance, to aid in preventing the negative consequences and persistent trajectories of low social status and heightened social anxiety. In total, 1741 adolescents in grades 7-9 participated at 3 yearly waves. A self-report questionnaire measured fear of negative evaluation. Peer nominations assessed likeability, popularity, and social avoidance. Lower popularity predicted more avoidance, and vice versa. More avoidance was related to lower likeability over time. Being less popular and/or more liked by peers, increased fear of negative evaluation. Support for a transactional model between social anxiety and social status was found, but distinguishing different social status and social anxiety components is necessary.

Differences in Aggression and Alcohol Use among Youth with Varying Levels of Victimization and Popularity Status.

Awareness that high-status adolescents can be targets of aggression has grown in recent years. However, questions remain about the associations of the confluence of victimization and popularity with adjustment. The current study fills this gap by examining the joint and unique effects of victimization and popularity on aggression and alcohol use. Participants were 804 Dutch adolescents (50.2% boys, Mage = 13.65) who were followed for one year. High-status victims were more aggressive and drank more alcohol than lower-status victims. High-status victims were also more proactively and indirectly aggressive and self-reported more bullying than high-status non-victims. Thus, the findings demonstrated a conjoined risk of victimization and popularity for some types of aggression.

The Role of Aggressive Peer Norms in Elementary School Children's Perceptions of Classroom Peer Climate and School Adjustment.

Although prior research has indicated that peer norms for aggression enhance the spread of aggression in classrooms, it is unclear to date how these norms relate to students' classroom climate perceptions and school adjustment. Aggressive descriptive norms reflect the average aggression of all students in classrooms, whereas aggressive popularity norms represent the extent to which aggressive behavior relates to popularity among peers. This study examined the role of aggressive descriptive and popularity norms in the classroom climate perceptions (cooperation, conflict, cohesion, isolation) and school adjustment (feelings of belonging; social, academic, and general self-esteem) of popular, well-liked, and victimized children. Self-reported and peer-nominated data were obtained from 1511 children (Mage = 10.60 years, SD = 0.50; 47.2% girls) from 58 fifth-grade classrooms. The results indicated that aggressive descriptive and popularity norms both matter in elementary school, but in diverging ways. Specifically, aggressive descriptive norms-rather than popularity norms-contributed to negative classroom climate perceptions irrespective of students' social position. In addition, whereas descriptive norms contributed to between-classroom variations in some aspects of school adjustment, aggressive popularity norms related to increased school maladjustment for popular and victimized children specifically. Thus, aggressive descriptive norms and popularity norms matter in complementary ways for children's classroom climate perceptions and adjustment in elementary education.

Bidirectional Associations between Popularity, Popularity Goal, and Aggression, Alcohol Use and Prosocial Behaviors in Adolescence: A 3-Year Prospective Longitudinal Study.

Adolescents' popularity and popularity goal have been shown to be related to their aggression and alcohol use. As intervention efforts increasingly aim to focus on prosocial alternatives for youth to gain status, it is essential to have a comprehensive understanding of how popularity and popularity goal are associated with aggression and substance use as well as prosocial behaviors over time. The current study examined the bidirectional associations of aggression (overt and relational aggression), alcohol use, and prosocial behavior with popularity and popularity goal in adolescence across 3 years using cross-lagged panel analyses. Participants were 839 Dutch adolescents (Mage = 13.36, SD = 0.98; 51.3% girls). The results indicated that popularity was consistently positively associated with popularity goal, but popularity goal did not significantly predict subsequent popularity. Popularity positively predicted elevated aggression and alcohol use, but lower levels of prosocial behavior. For the full sample, alcohol use and overt aggression in grade 7 both predicted subsequent popularity in grade 8. However, when considering gender differences, overt aggression no longer was a significant predictor of popularity. These results were discussed in terms of the dynamic interplay between popularity, popularity goal, and behaviors, and in terms of implications for prevention and intervention efforts.

Adolescent Victim Types Across the Popularity Status Hierarchy: Differences in Internalizing Symptoms.

Previous studies have called attention to the fact that popular youth are not immune to peer victimization, suggesting there is heterogeneity in the popularity of victims. Yet, no study to date has determined whether victims with different levels of popularity status can be identified using person-oriented analysis. Such analysis is critically needed to confirm the existence of popular victims. Further, there remains a paucity of research on internalizing indices of such popular victims, especially compared to other victim and non-victim groups. To address this gap in the research literature, the current study used latent profile analysis to identify subgroups of victims based on victimization (self- and peer-report) and popularity (peer-report). This study sought to verify the existence of popular victims and to compare victim subgroups on loneliness and self-esteem. Participants were 804 Dutch adolescents (50.2% boys, Mage = 13.65 years, ranging from 11.29 to 16.75 years). The results revealed six subgroups, including a group of popular self-identified victims. Popular self-identified victims were generally less lonely than other victims, but had higher loneliness and lower self-esteem than non-victims. Implications are discussed for understanding the victimization experiences of high-status youth.

Effects of a seating chart intervention for target and nontarget students.

Teachers' efforts to manage classroom social dynamics can have positive effects on students' social relationships. One way in which teachers may seek to manage these relationships is through seating arrangements. In a randomized control trial, van den Berg, Segers, and Cillessen (2012) found that closer proximity in the classroom can reduce disliking between two students who dislike each other (target students). However, the effect of this intervention on the larger class is unknown. The current study implemented a short version of this seating chart intervention, investigated effects on both target and nontarget students, and explored whether teachers' efficacy to manage social dynamics moderated the effects of the intervention. Data came from 1573 students in 59 Grade 5 classrooms in the Netherlands. Results indicated that students in intervention classes exhibited more overt aggression and perceived less cooperation among classmates than students in the control condition. These effects were consistent across target and nontarget students and were not moderated by teachers' efficacy for managing social dynamics. It may be that the intervention initially causes tension between target students that is resolved first at the dyad level and is only later noticed by other classmates. Whether these initial negative effects for target and nontarget students become positive after a longer period of adjustment and reorganization of relationships is to be determined in further research.

It's not just what you say, it's how you say it too. Adolescents' hostile attribution of intent and emotional responses to social comments.

A highly prevalent and relevant situation in which adolescents have to interpret the intentions of others is when they interact with peers. We therefore successfully introduced a new paradigm to measure hostile attribution bias (HAB) and emotional responses to such social interactions and examined how it related to youth's aggressiveness. We presented 881 adolescents (Mage = 14.35 years; SD = 1.23; 48.1% male) with audio fragments of age-mates expressing social comments that varied in content (e.g., what the person says) and tone of voice (e.g., how the person says it). Participants' peers also reported on their aggressiveness. In general, added negativity of content and tone was driving the youth's intent attribution and emotional responses to the comments. In line with the Social Information Processing model, we found more hostile attribution of intent and more negative emotional responses of aggressive youth to ambiguous stimuli. Aggression was also related to more hostile intent attributions when both content and tone were negative. Unlike most studies on HAB, the aggression effects in the current study emerged for girls, but not boys. Implications of these results and future use of the experimental paradigm are discussed.

Preference and popularity as distinct forms of status: A meta-analytic review of 20 years of research.

INTRODUCTION: A systematic meta-analysis was conducted of the association between preference and popularity across childhood and adolescence. The role of development, sex, and region of the world were examined. METHOD: The analysis was conducted on 135 samples including 136,014 participants. The samples were divided by age (upper grades primary school, k = 41; lower grades secondary school, k = 72; upper grades secondary school, k = 22) and region (North America, k = 54; Europe, k = 66; China, k = 10). RESULTS: Across all samples, a moderate positive association between preference and popularity was found (r = 0.45). The association was significantly weaker in the upper grades of secondary school (r = 0.37) than in the lower grades of secondary school (r = 0.47) or the upper grades of primary school (r = 0.47). The association was weaker for girls (r = 0.26) than for boys (r = 0.38) in the upper grades of secondary school. The association was weaker in European samples (r = 0.41) than in those from North America (r = 0.50) and China (r = 0.57). CONCLUSIONS: The results confirmed that preference and popularity are related but distinct dimensions of adolescent peer status. The association differed significantly by age, sex, and region of the world. Further research should examine additional factors that explain the variability in the association between preference and popularity.

Dyadic nominations of bullying: Comparing types of bullies and their victims.

Previous studies indicate that when identifying individuals involved in bullying, the concordance between self- and peer- reports is low to moderate. There is support that self- and peer- identified victims constitute distinct types of victims and differ in adjustment. Likewise, differentiating between self- and peer- reports of bullying may also reveal distinct types of bullies. The goal of this study was to examine differences between types of bullies identified via dyadic nominations (self-identified, victim-identified, and self/victim identified). First, we examined the concordance between dyadic nominations of bullying and traditional measures of bullying (i.e., self- and peer-reports). Second, we compared the behavioral profiles of the bully types to nonbullies, with a focus on aggressive behaviors and social status. Third, we examined whether the types of bullies targeted victims with different levels of popularity, as well as the role of their own popularity and prioritizing of popularity. Participants were 1,008 Dutch adolescents (50.1% male, Mage = 14.14 years, standard deviation [SD] = 1.30) who completed a classroom assessment of dyadic nominations, peer nominations, and self-report items. Results indicated that victim identified and self/victim identified bullies were more aggressive, more popular, and less socially preferred than self-identified bullies and nonbullies. Self/victim identified bullies targeted victims with the highest social status. The association between bully type and victims' popularity was further qualified by bullies' own popularity and the degree to which they prioritized popularity. Implications for the implementation of dyadic nominations are discussed.

Predicting Adolescents' Bullying Participation from Developmental Trajectories of Social Status and Behavior.

The aim of this study was to determine how trajectory clusters of social status (social preference and perceived popularity) and behavior (direct aggression and prosocial behavior) from age 9 to age 14 predicted adolescents' bullying participant roles at age 16 and 17 (n = 266). Clusters were identified with multivariate growth mixture modeling (GMM). The findings showed that participants' developmental trajectories of social status and social behavior across childhood and early adolescence predicted their bullying participant role involvement in adolescence. Practical implications and suggestions for further research are discussed.

Friendly fire: Longitudinal effects of exposure to violent video games on aggressive behavior in adolescent friendship dyads.

Research on gaming effects has focused on adolescence, a developmental period in which peer relationships become increasingly salient. However, the impact of peers on the effects of violent gaming on adolescents has been understudied. This study examined whether adolescents' exposure to violent video games predicted their own and their friend's aggression one year later. Among 705 gaming adolescents, 141 dyads were identified based on reciprocated best friend nominations (73.8% male, Mage = 13.98). Actor-Partner Interdependence Models indicated that adolescent males' (but not females') exposure to violent games positively predicted the aggression of their best friend 1 year later. This effect appeared regardless of whether the friends played video games together or not. The study illustrates the importance of peers in the association between violent gaming and aggression.

Developmental Pathways to Preference and Popularity in Middle Childhood.

This study examined the associations between children's early life experiences with parents, ego resiliency and ego undercontrol, and peer group social status in a longitudinal, multimethod study from infancy to middle childhood. Participants were 129 children (52% boys) who were followed from 15 months of age to 9 years and their primary caregivers from the Nijmegen Longitudinal Study on Infant and Child Development. The measurements included observations of parent-child interaction, teacher ratings of ego resiliency and ego undercontrol, and peer-reported social status. Quality of parental interactive behavior was associated with ego resiliency and ego undercontrol. Ego resiliency and ego undercontrol were uniquely related to preference and popularity. The findings provide insight into the developmental pathways leading to the two distinct types of social status.

Computer-Based Methods for Collecting Peer Nomination Data: Utility, Practice, and Empirical Support.

New technologies have led to several major advances in psychological research over the past few decades. Peer nomination research is no exception. Thanks to these technological innovations, computerized data collection is becoming more common in peer nomination research. However, computer-based assessment is more than simply programming the questionnaire and asking respondents to fill it in on computers. In this chapter the advantages and challenges of computer-based assessments are discussed. In addition, a list of practical recommendations and considerations is provided to inform researchers on how computer-based methods can be applied to their own research. Although the focus is on the collection of peer nomination data in particular, many of the requirements, considerations, and implications are also relevant for those who consider the use of other sociometric assessment methods (e.g., paired comparisons, peer ratings, peer rankings) or computer-based assessments in general.

Popularity differentially predicts reactive and proactive aggression in early adolescence.

Previous research has indicated that peer popularity is associated with aggressive behavior. However, it is not yet clear whether popularity is uniquely related to different functions of aggression. In this study, we examined associations between peer-perceived popularity, and reactive and proactive aggression using a cross-sectional and a longitudinal design. Yearly sociometric measures of popularity, and reactive and proactive aggression were gathered from 266 seventh and eight grade adolescents (Mage grade 7 = 12.80, SDage = .40). Popularity was positively correlated with proactive aggression and negatively correlated with reactive aggression, both concurrently as over time. Curvilinear trends indicated that a significant minority of low versus high popular adolescents showed both functions of aggression. Somewhat stronger effects of popularity on proactive aggression were found for boys than girls. Stably popular adolescents showed the highest levels of proactive aggression, whereas stably unpopular youth showed the highest levels of reactive aggression. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.

Peer status and classroom seating arrangements: a social relations analysis.

The current studies addressed the associations of classroom seating arrangements with peer status using the social relations model. Study 1 examined whether physical distance between classmates was associated with likeability and popularity. Participants were 336 children from 14 fifth- and sixth-grade classrooms (Mage=11.36 years, 47.3% boys). Children who sat closer to the center of the classroom were liked more. Moreover, classmates who sat closer together liked each other more and perceived each other as more popular. Study 2 examined whether children's likeability and popularity judgments were also reflected in the way they positioned themselves relative to their peers when they could arrange their classroom themselves. Participants were 158 children from 6 fifth- and sixth-grade classrooms (Mage=11.64 years, 50.5% boys). Participants placed liked and popular peers closer to themselves than disliked and unpopular peers. If children placed a classmate closer to themselves, they perceived that peer as better liked and more popular and were perceived as better liked and more popular in return. Implications for further research on classroom seating arrangements and peer relationships are discussed.

Aggression, hostile attributions, status, and gender: a continued quest.

This study had two goals. The first goal was to examine the association between two indicators of negative bias in children and their associations with children's aggression. The second goal was to examine a possible dual role of social status, operationalized as popularity, as a concurrent correlate of negative bias and as a moderator of the effect of negative bias on children's aggression. The roles of gender and type of aggression were also examined. Participants were 366 fifth- and sixth-grade children (49% girls; M age = 11.07 years, SD = 0.85 year) who completed peer- and self-report measures in their classrooms. The results showed that the two indicators of negative bias were associated with each other and with children's aggression. Popularity was weakly associated with negative bias. However, popularity did moderate the association of hostile attributions with aggression. The associations of both measures of negative bias with aggression also varied by gender, with stronger associations for boys than for girls. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

Friendships in Emerging Adulthood: The Role of Parental and Friendship Attachment Representations and Intimacy.

The current studies addressed the associations between attachment representations with parents and a single best friend, intimacy behaviors (self-disclosure and support-seeking), and friendship quality in emerging adulthood, using the actor-partner interdependence mediation model (APIMeM). Study 1 (N = 186 dyads) examined whether attachment to parents predicted friendship quality, and whether this was mediated by attachment to their best friend. More avoidance or anxiety with parents predicted lower friendship quality, which was mediated by avoidance or anxiety with their best friend. Study 2 (N = 118 dyads) examined whether self-disclosure and support-seeking mediated the link between attachment with best friend and friendship quality. Anxiety with their best friend predicted lower friendship quality, which was mediated by support-seeking. Anxiety predicted less self-disclosure and support-seeking. We found no effects of avoidance. No partner effects were found in both studies. The findings are discussed in terms of adult attachment theory.

Structural Brain Correlates of Childhood Inhibited Temperament: An ENIGMA-Anxiety Mega-analysis.

Temperament involves stable behavioral and emotional tendencies that differ between individuals, which can be first observed in infancy or early childhood and relate to behavior in many contexts and over many years.1 One of the most rigorously characterized temperament classifications relates to the tendency of individuals to avoid the unfamiliar and to withdraw from unfamiliar people, objects, and unexpected events. This temperament is referred to as behavioral inhibition or inhibited temperament (IT).2 IT is a moderately heritable trait1 that can be measured in multiple species.3 In humans, levels of IT can be quantified from the first year of life through direct behavioral observations or reports by caregivers or teachers. Similar approaches as well as self-report questionnaires on current and/or retrospective levels of IT1 can be used later in life.

Emerging Adults' Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Prospective Longitudinal Study on the Importance of Social Support.

The aim of this longitudinal study was to investigate emerging adults' mental health before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, and whether social support from mothers, fathers, and best friends moderated the change in mental health. Participants were 98 emerging adults (46% men) who were assessed prior to COVID-19 (M age = 20.60 years) and during the first lockdown (M age = 22.67 years). Results indicated that the pandemic did not uniformly lead to elevated levels of mental health problems, but instead depended on level of mental health problems prior to COVID-19 and the source of support. For emerging adults who already experienced more problems prior to COVID-19, more maternal support was related to decreases in general psychological distress and depressive symptoms, whereas more paternal support was related to increases in general psychological distress and depressive symptoms. Support from best friends were not associated with (changes in) mental health.