Patterns of Gender Development Across Intersections of Age, Gender, and Ethnicity-Race.

Two components of gender identity are gender similarity, how one's self-concept relates to the major gender collectives (i.e., female, male), and felt pressure to conform to gender norms. The development of these components across ages and contexts has been understudied. The focus of this study was to examine variations in gender similarity and felt pressure across multiple intersecting contexts: developmental stage, gender, and ethnic-racial group. Six data sets were harmonized and means were compared across 2628 participants (51% girls, 49% boys) from four different developmental cohorts (childhood n = 678, early adolescence n = 1322, adolescence n = 415, and young adulthood n = 213) from diverse ethnic-racial backgrounds (45% White, 23% Latinx/Hispanic, 11% Black/African-American, 7% Asian-American, 5% American Indian, and 5% Multiracial). Results revealed nuanced patterns: Gender intensification was supported in early adolescence, primarily for boys. Young adult men reported lower levels of pressure and gender typicality than younger boys, but young adult women's levels were generally not different than younger girls. Surprisingly, young adult women's levels of own-gender similarity and pressure from parents were higher than adolescent girls. Expectations of gender differences in gender typicality and felt pressure were supported for all ages except young adults, with higher levels for boys. Finally, there were more similarities than differences across ethnic-racial groups, though when there were differences, minoritized participants reported heightened gender typicality and pressure (largely accounted for by higher scores for Black and Latinx participants and lower scores for White and Multiracial participants). These results add to what is understood about contextually dependent gender development.

Being helpful to other-gender peers: School-age children's gender-based intergroup prosocial behaviour.

Promoting prosocial behaviour towards those who are dissimilar from oneself is an urgent contemporary issue. Because children spend much time in same-gender relationships, promoting other-gender prosociality could help them develop more inclusive relationships. Our goals were to better understand the development of school-age children's intergroup prosocial behavior and the extent to which elementary school-age children consider their own and the recipient's gender in prosocial behaviour. Participants included 515 3rd, 4th and 5th graders (263, 51.1% boys, Mageinyears  = 9.08, SD = 1.00) surveyed in the fall (T1) and spring (T2). We assessed children's prosociality using peer nominations. Children became more prosocial toward same-gender peers over time but prosocial behavior toward other-gender peers remained stable. We found that gender mattered: Children showed an ingroup bias in prosociality favouring members of their own-gender group. Having other-gender friendships positively predicted children's prosocial behaviour towards other-gender peers over time. Children's felt similarity to other-gender peers was not directly, but indirectly, related to more prosocial behaviour toward other-gender peers. Findings shed light on potential pathways to fostering school-age children's intergroup prosocial behaviors.

Power in Aggressor-Victim Relationships: Exploring Social, Physical, Gender- and Ethnicity-Based Power.

Theory highlights power in aggressor-victim relationships, yet empirical work assessing dyadic power is largely absent. Variability in power balance versus imbalance within aggressor-victim dyads (based on social, physical, gender- and ethnicity-based power) was explored. Participants (N = 952; grade 6-8; 50% girls, 44% Hispanic/Latina/o) nominated aggressors and victims (4662 aggressor-victim dyads; 642 strong dyads [based on reputational strength]; 169 sustained dyads [based on longevity]). Dyadic social power (social network centrality and prestige) was calculated from friendship nominations. Self-report was used for dyadic physical (body mass index), gender- and ethnicity-based power. Across power indicators, there were more power-balanced than imbalanced dyads (particularly for strong and sustained dyads). The findings challenge theoretical notions that aggressors are more powerful than their victims and have implications for aggressor-victim relationships.

A dyadic perspective on aggressive behavior between friends.

Youth are sometimes victimized by their friends, but we know little about the nature of these relationships. Taking a dyadic approach, we studied relationships characterized by both friendship and aggression. Participants (952 middle schoolers; 50% female; 44% Latinx) nominated friends and aggressive perpetrators and victims. Using two analytic samples of friend dyads (N = 6971) and aggressive dyads (N = 4662), results indicated that aggression by a friend was somewhat common. Compared with friend dyads without aggression, aggressive friend dyads were stronger (i.e., reciprocal) and longer lasting, though victimized youth were less satisfied with the friendship. Aggressive dyads who were friends more often had reciprocal aggression than aggressive dyads who were not friends. Results provide insight into the dynamics of aggression in close peer relationships.

Does gender-bending help or hinder friending? The roles of gender and gender similarity in friendship dissolution.

We explored how gender and gender similarity affects friendship dissolution following the transition to middle school. We predicted that both gender and gender similarity (measured by perceived similarity to own-gender and other-gender peers) explain dissolution trends and that less own-gender similarity or more other-gender similarity predicts more friendship dissolution. We considered gender and gender similarity at both the individual and dyad level (reflecting the discrepancy between friends). Participants were 198 students in Grade 6 (42% Latinx, 21% Caucasian, 10% Native American, 8% African American, 2% Asian American, and 17% mixed backgrounds; 77% qualified for free/reduced meals) in reciprocated same- or mixed-gender friendships followed from fall to spring of the academic year. Multilevel multimember logistic regression models, nesting friendships within each participating individual, demonstrated that girl-girl friendships were less likely to dissolve than boy-boy friendships, and mixed-gender friendships did not dissolve more than same-gender friendships. Feeling similar to one's own gender predicted less dissolution, but feeling similar to the other gender did not increase friendship dissolution. There was no support for the hypothesis that feeling similar to both genders (i.e., androgyny) protected against friendship dissolution, nor was there any support for the hypothesis that dyad-level differences in gender similarity would predict dissolution. The discussion focuses on the importance of conducting individual and dyad-level analyses as well as including gender similarity constructs when studying gender differences in friendships and their trajectories over time. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Dyadic Peer Interactions: the Impact of Aggression on Impression Formation with New Peers.

Little is known about youth's initial interactions with previously unfamiliar peers and how aggression can affect behavior in these interactions. We observed previously unfamiliar youth engaging in a dyadic activity to determine how tendencies toward aggression related to behavior within the activity (i.e., collaboration) and how collaboration affected initial impression formation. From a dyadic perspective, we assessed how similarities versus differences in tendencies toward aggression affected the nature of the interaction. Participants were 108 5th grade dyads (M = 11.13 years; 50% female; 67% White), observed in a laboratory session. Teachers rated individuals' aggression; ratings were used to calculate dyadic-level aggression (the discrepancy between partners). Observers rated dyads' collaboration during the interaction and participants reported perceptions about their partner after the interaction. Results indicated that collaboration mediated the link between discrepancy in aggression and peers' perceptions of one another. Specifically, dyads more discrepant in their aggression collaborated less and had less positive perceptions of one another. Results highlight the importance of considering a dyadic perspective and indicate a potential intervention point to improve youth's peer relationships.

Gender integration in coeducational classrooms: Advancing educational research and practice.

Despite the fact that most boys and girls are in classrooms together, there is considerable variation in the degree to which their classrooms reflect gender integration (GI). In some classrooms, boys' and girls' relationships with each other are generally positive and harmonious. However, in other classes, students tend to only work with classmates of the same gender (i.e., gender segregation, GS), and cross-gender interactions seldom occur or, when they do, they may not be positive. As such, the coeducational context of schools provides no assurance that boys and girls work effectively together to learn, solve academic problems, and support one another in their academic efforts. The purpose of this perspective paper is to call attention to the importance of studying and understanding the role of GI in contemporary U.S. coeducational classrooms. Some of the costs associated with the failure to consider GI also are identified, as are implications for future research and educational practice. (PsycINFO Database Record

Kindergarten School Engagement: Linking Early Temperament and Academic Achievement at the Transition to School.

RESEARCH FINDINGS: Although children's temperament contributes to their academic success, little is known regarding the mechanisms through which temperament is associated withacademic achievement during the transition to elementary school. One such mechanism may be school engagement, but findings are inconsistent and limited. Across two waves of data at the transition to school, we examined the role of kindergarten emotional and behavioral engagement as links between preschool temperament (positive emotionality, anger, andeffortful control), and kindergartenacademic achievement, among a predominantlyMexican/Mexican-Americansample of 241children drawn from Head Start classrooms. Significant direct effects indicated that preschool anger was negatively,and positive emotionality and effortful control werepositively,associated withkindergarten behavioralengagement.Only preschool anger was significantly associatedwithkindergarten emotional engagement. In turn, kindergarten behavioral, but not emotional, engagement was directly, positively associated withkindergartenacademic achievement. All three preschool temperament measures were indirectly related to kindergarten achievement via kindergarten behavioral engagement, and anger was indirectly related to kindergarten achievement via emotional engagement. PRACTICE OR POLIC: Findings highlight the importance of understanding the role of engagement as a mechanismthat can foster children'sacademic achievement at a key developmental transition.

The Influence of Peers During Adolescence: Does Homophobic Name Calling by Peers Change Gender Identity?

Adolescents actively evaluate their identities during adolescence, and one of the most salient and central identities for youth concerns their gender identity. Experiences with peers may inform gender identity. Unfortunately, many youth experience homophobic name calling, a form of peer victimization, and it is unknown whether youth internalize these peer messages and how these messages might influence gender identity. The goal of the present study was to assess the role of homophobic name calling on changes over the course of an academic year in adolescents' gender identity. Specifically, this study extends the literature using a new conceptualization and measure of gender identity that involves assessing how similar adolescents feel to both their own- and other-gender peers and, by employing longitudinal social network analyses, provides a rigorous analytic assessment of the impact of homophobic name calling on changes in these two dimensions of gender identity. Symbolic interaction perspectives-the "looking glass self"-suggest that peer feedback is incorporated into the self-concept. The current study tests this hypothesis by determining if adolescents respond to homophobic name calling by revising their self-view, specifically, how the self is viewed in relation to both gender groups. Participants were 299 6th grade students (53% female). Participants reported peer relationships, experiences of homophobic name calling, and gender identity (i.e., similarity to own- and other-gender peers). Longitudinal social network analyses revealed that homophobic name calling early in the school year predicted changes in gender identity over time. The results support the "looking glass self" hypothesis: experiencing homophobic name calling predicted identifying significantly less with own-gender peers and marginally more with other-gender peers over the course of an academic year. The effects held after controlling for participant characteristics (e.g., gender), social network features (e.g., norms), and peer experiences (e.g., friend influence, general victimization). Homophobic name calling emerged as a form of peer influence that changed early adolescent gender identity, such that adolescents in this study appear to have internalized the messages they received from peers and incorporated these messages into their personal views of their own gender identity.

The efficacy of a relationship building intervention in 5th grade.

The present study reports initial efficacy data for a new school-based intervention - the Relationship Building Intervention (RBI) - that includes a series of teacher-facilitated, structured activities designed to promote positive peer relationships and inclusive classroom communities. The RBI was evaluated in fifth-grade classrooms by estimating multilevel model (MLM) analyses of covariance (ANCOVA) comparing 368 fifth-grade students in intervention classrooms with 259 fifth-graders in control classrooms on social behaviors, perceptions of classroom connectedness, and academic performance. Controlling for pretest scores, cohort, and demographic variables, findings revealed that students who participated in the RBI liked school more, felt a greater sense of classroom identification and inclusion, were perceived by teachers to be less aggressive, and performed better academically than students who were in control classrooms. Further, implementation data showed that students and teachers responded positively to the activities. These results suggest that the RBI is a promising approach for improving the social and learning environment in fifth-grade classrooms.

Reciprocal Associations between Delinquent Behavior and Social Network Position during Middle School.

Delinquency and social standing are linked within middle school. Yet, theoretical explanations are generally unidirectional, and prevailing models are somewhat contradictory in terms of the directionality of the link between delinquency and social standing. The current study aimed to expand upon our current understanding of the social nature of delinquency by examining reciprocal associations between delinquency and social standing. We conceptualized social standing using two indices of social network position: social network prestige (how important or influential one is within the peer network) and social network centrality (how well-connected one is to peers in the network). We also assessed gender differences in associations. Ethnically diverse middle school students were followed longitudinally across one year (three waves; N = 516, M age = 11.91 years at the first wave; 47% girls; 55% Latina/o). Participants reported on their delinquent behavior and nominated friends within their grade; friendship nominations were used to calculate social network prestige and centrality. Results indicated that both indicators of social network position were associated with increases in delinquency across school years, but not within the school year. Further, delinquency was associated with increases in social network prestige but not social network centrality (again, only across school years). Similarities across gender were found. The findings highlight the need to expand upon current, generally unidirectional theories of the social nature of delinquency, and suggest important differences between change within vs. across the school year.

Does an aggressor's target choice matter? Assessing change in the social network prestige of aggressive youth.

Based on a social dominance approach, aggression is conceptualized as a strategy used to gain position, power, and influence within the peer network. However, aggression may only be beneficial when targeted against particular peers; both victims' social standing and the number of victims targeted may impact aggressors' social standing. The current study examined associations between aggressors' targeting tendencies (victims' social standing and number of victims) and aggressors' own social standing, both concurrently and over time. Analyses were conducted using three analytic samples of seventh and eighth grade aggressors (Ns ranged from 161 to 383, 49% girls; 50% Latina/o). Participants nominated their friends; nominations were used to calculate social network prestige. Peer nominations were used to identify aggressors and their victim(s). For each aggressor, number of victims and victims' social network prestige were assessed. Aggressors with more victims and with highly prestigious victims had higher social network prestige themselves, and they increased more in prestige over time than aggressors with fewer victims and less prestigious victims (though there were some differences across analytic samples). Findings have implications for the need to extend the social dominance approach to better address the links between aggressors and victims. Aggr. Behav. 43:364-374, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Assessing the Impact of Homophobic Name Calling on Early Adolescent Mental Health: A Longitudinal Social Network Analysis of Competing Peer Influence Effects.

The goal of the current study was to improve our understanding of why adolescence is a critical period for the consideration of declining mental health. We did this by focusing on the impact of homophobic name calling on early adolescent mental health after the transition to middle school. Because we know that homophobic name calling emerges within a dynamic peer group structure, we used longitudinal social network analysis to assess the relation between homophobic name calling, depressive symptoms, and self-esteem while simultaneously limiting bias from alternative peer socialization mechanisms. A sample of adolescents who recently transitioned to a large public middle school (N = 299; 53 % girls; M age = 11.13 years, SD = 0.48) were assessed. Longitudinal assessments of peer relationship networks, depressive symptoms, and self-esteem were collected during the fall and spring of the academic year. The results suggest that, after accounting for the simultaneous effect of alternative peer socialization processes, adolescent experiences of homophobic name calling in the fall predict higher levels of depressive symptoms and lower levels of self-esteem over the course of the academic year. These findings provide evidence of a significant influence of homophobic name calling on adolescent mental health.

Peer Influence on Academic Performance: A Social Network Analysis of Social-Emotional Intervention Effects.

Longitudinal social network analysis (SNA) was used to examine how a social-emotional learning (SEL) intervention may be associated with peer socialization on academic performance. Fifth graders (N = 631; 48 % girls; 9 to 12 years) were recruited from six elementary schools. Intervention classrooms (14) received a relationship building intervention (RBI) and control classrooms (8) received elementary school as usual. At pre- and post-test, students nominated their friends, and teachers completed assessments of students' writing and math performance. The results of longitudinal SNA suggested that the RBI was associated with friend selection and peer influence within the classroom peer network. Friendship choices were significantly more diverse (i.e., less evidence of social segregation as a function of ethnicity and academic ability) in intervention compared to control classrooms, and peer influence on improved writing and math performance was observed in RBI but not control classrooms. The current findings provide initial evidence that SEL interventions may change social processes in a classroom peer network and may break down barriers of social segregation and improve academic performance.

Targeted Victimization: Exploring Linear and Curvilinear Associations Between Social Network Prestige and Victimization.

Are early adolescent victims of peer-directed aggression youth who hold prominent positions in the social hierarchy or those who are socially marginalized? The present study tackles this question by testing for linear and curvilinear relationships between social network prestige and physical and relational forms of peer victimization for boys and girls. Participants were 952 middle schoolers (age range = 10-14 years; 49.9 % girls; 44 % Latino). Participants nominated victims and friends; friendship nominations were used to calculate social network prestige. Both hypotheses received support, with variation by gender. Girls high in social network prestige were highly victimized. For boys, those both high and low in social network prestige were highly victimized, whereas those at mid-levels of social network prestige were low in victimization. The findings are discussed in relation to a social dominance model of peer-directed aggression, and the practical implications are discussed in relation to protecting youth who are frequent targets of peer victimization.

Peer effects on Head Start children's preschool competency.

The goals of this study were to investigate whether young children attending Head Start (N = 292; Mage = 4.3 years) selected peers based on their preschool competency and whether children's levels of preschool competency were influenced by their peers' levels of preschool competency. Children's peer interaction partners were intensively observed several times a week over 1 academic year. Social network analyses revealed that children selected peer interaction partners with similar levels of preschool competency and were influenced over time by their partners' levels of preschool competency. These effects held even after controlling for several child (e.g., sex and language) and family factors (e.g., financial strain and parent education). Implications for promoting preschool competency among Head Start children are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record

A relational framework for understanding bullying: Developmental antecedents and outcomes.

This article reviews current research on the relational processes involved in peer bullying, considering developmental antecedents and long-term consequences. The following themes are highlighted: (a) aggression can be both adaptive and maladaptive, and this distinction has implications for bullies' functioning within peer social ecologies; (b) developmental antecedents and long-term consequences of bullying have not been well-distinguished from the extant research on aggressive behavior; (c) bullying is aggression that operates within relationships of power and abuse. Power asymmetry and repetition elements of traditional bullying definitions have been hard to operationalize, but without these specifications and more dyadic measurement approaches there may be little rationale for a distinct literature on bullying--separate from aggression. Applications of a relational approach to bullying are provided using gender as an example. Implications for future research are drawn from the study of relationships and interpersonal theories of developmental psychopathology.

Gendered-peer relationships in educational contexts.

The goals of this chapter are to discuss the theories and evidence concerning the roles of gendered-peer interactions and relationships in children's lives at school. We begin by discussing the tendency of boys and girls to separate into same-sex peer groups and consider the theories and evidence concerning how gender segregation occurs and how peers influence children's learning and development. We then turn to the important and understudied question of why some children have more exposure to same-sex peers than others. We consider factors that contribute to variability in children's experiences with gender segregation such as the types of schools children attend and the kinds of classroom experiences they have with teachers. Finally, we review new evidence concerning the cognitive and affective factors that illustrate that children are actively involved in constructing the social world that surrounds them.

Why the bully/victim relationship is so pernicious: a gendered perspective on power and animosity among bullies and their victims.

The bully/victim relationship was studied in a sample of elementary school children (N = 1,289 in first, third, and fifth grades). Three questions were tested. Does bullying involve a power differential between bully and victim? Are bully/victim dyads participants in a relationship, whether mutual liking or disliking? Does the gender composition of the bully/victim dyad moderate power differential and relational context patterns? Hierarchical linear modeling was used to analyze predictors of the reputational strength of bully/victim ties. The findings revealed that the bully/victim dyads most frequently nominated by peers were characterized by asymmetries in social status, where bullies were increasingly more popular than their victims, and by asymmetries in aggression, where bullies were increasingly less aggressive than their victims. Bullies and victims were likely to select one another as among the children that they least like. Most effects with respect to aggression, popularity, and relationships were moderated by the gender composition of the bully/victim dyad. Implications for a developmental psychopathology perspective on peer bullying and victimization are highlighted.

Playing with Others: Head Start Children's Peer Play and Relations with Kindergarten School Competence.

Time-sampled observations of Head Start preschoolers' (N = 264; 51.5% boys; 76% Mexican American; M = 53.11 and SD = 6.15 months of age) peer play in the classroom were gathered during fall and spring semesters. One year later, kindergarten teachers rated these children's school competence. Latent growth models indicated that, on average, children's peer play was moderately frequent and increased over time during preschool. Children with higher initial levels or with higher slopes of peer play in Head Start had higher levels of kindergarten school competence. Results suggest that Head Start children's engagement with peers may foster development of skills that help their transition into formal schooling. These findings highlight the importance of peer play, and suggest that peer play in Head Start classrooms contributes to children's adaptation to the demands of formal schooling.