Developmental Trajectories of Social Justice Values in Adolescence: Relations with Sympathy and Friendship Quality

This study examined developmental trajectories of social justice values (SJV) in a representative sample of Swiss adolescents (N = 1258) at 15 (Time 1), 18 (Time 2), and 21 years of age (Time 3). SJV and friendship quality were measured via self‐reports. Sympathy was assessed via self‐ and mother‐reports. Latent class growth analysis revealed three developmental trajectories of SJV: high‐stable (80 percent), moderate‐decreasing (17 percent), and low‐increasing (3 percent). Adolescents with low levels of self‐ and mother‐reported sympathy were more likely to be members of the low‐increasing than the high‐stable or moderate decreasing trajectory groups. Adolescents who reported low levels of sympathy and friendship quality at 15 years of age were more likely to be members of the moderate‐decreasing trajectory group than the high‐stable trajectory group. Results are discussed with respect to the potential significance of sympathy and friendship quality for understanding the development of SJV during adolescence.     

Trajectories of low-income mothers’ and fathers’ engagement in learning activities and child socioemotional skills in middle childhood

Using Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing data (N = 3259), the current study examined Black and Latinx mothers’ and fathers’ trajectories of engagement in learning activities (e.g., storytelling) from infancy to age 5, and whether those trajectories predicted socioemotional skills at age 9, predictors of the trajectories (poverty, mother-father nonresidence, temperament, race/ethnicity), and moderators of the trajectories. Mothers’ and fathers’ learning activities decreased significantly over time as children got older. Higher rates of decline in fathers’ engagement in learning activities over time significantly predicted lower socioemotional skills. Mother-father nonresidence during infancy was associated significantly with higher rates of decline in mothers’ and fathers’ learning activities. Difficult temperament moderated the association between fathers’ trajectories and child outcomes.     

Trajectories of team and individual sports participation in childhood and links with internalizing problems

The purpose of this 5-year longitudinal study is to identify trajectories of team and individual sports participation in childhood, and to compare these trajectories on different types of internalizing problems. Parents reported their children's annual sports participation from the ages of 6–10 (n = 785) and teachers reported internalizing problems (depression, anxiety, social withdrawal) at the beginning and at the end of this period. The study used latent class growth analyses to identify two trajectories of team sports and two trajectories of individual sports participation were identified: (1) high participation, and (2) low participation. Considering baseline level of internalizing problems and gender, children in the high participation team sports trajectory show significantly fewer depression, anxiety, and social withdrawal behaviors at age 10 than those in the low participation team sports trajectory. No differences between individual sports trajectories were observed. Comparison with joint trajectory groups partially confirmed these results but also showed that sustained participation in multiple individual sports could also be linked to decreased anxiety. Our findings suggest that participation in team sports should be encouraged to promote certain aspects of children's mental health.     

Developmental Changes in the Priority of Perceived Status in Childhood and Adolescence

This study examined the degree to which children and adolescents prioritize popularity in the peer group over other relational domains. Participants were 1013 children and adolescents from grade 1 through senior year of college (ages 6–22 years) who were presented with a series of social dilemmas in which attaining popularity was opposed to five other priorities: friendship, personal achievement, following rules, prosocial behavior, and romantic interests. A curvilinear trend was found for the priority of popularity that peaked in early adolescence. At this age especially, participants prioritized status enhancement over other domains. Across the age range of this study, males and majority students were more preoccupied with reputational status than females and minority students. The discussion focused on the developmental functions of reputational status in early adolescence.     

Social assistance trajectories among young adults in Finland: What are the determinants of welfare dependency?

Social assistance receipt is typical among young adults, but the long‐term trajectories of social assistance receipt have been less studied. We use Finnish population register data to study the kinds of social assistance trajectories found among young adults. We also analyze how individual and family characteristics are associated with the likelihood of following different social assistance trajectories. Individuals are followed from the age of 19 to 25. According to the results, social assistance receipt is relatively common among young adults but spell duration is usually short. Around 35% receive social assistance at least once between the ages of 19 and 25, and 2.5% receive social assistance each year. Using latent class growth analysis, we estimated six trajectories based on the annual number of social assistance months: (1) no receipt; (2) transitory; (3) slow exit; (4) occasional; (5) increase; and (6) dependency. Almost 4% of young adults follow the “dependency” trajectory. The results from multinomial logistic regression indicate that having only a short education is a particularly strong predictor of social assistance dependency. Parental social assistance receipt and moving out of the parental home at a young age are also significant predictors of social assistance receipt.     

Aggressive Behaviors in Social Interaction and Developmental Adaptation: A Narrative Analysis of Interpersonal Conflicts During Early Adolescence

Using conflict narratives reported by adolescents in grade 7 (mean age = 13.4 years), this study investigated the interactional properties and developmental functions of four types of aggressive behaviors: social aggression, direct relational aggression, physical aggression, and verbal aggression. A total of 475 participants from the Carolina Longitudinal Study ( Cairns & Cairns, 1994 ) were included. Results showed that the majority of conflict interactions involved more than a dyad. The use of social aggression (e.g., concealed social attack) was associated with more individuals involved in the conflict. Social aggression was primarily reported as an initiating behavior for interpersonal conflicts, while direct relational aggression was a responding behavior. Medium to high levels of reciprocity were found for physical, verbal, and direct relational aggression, whereas a low level of reciprocity was reported for social aggression. School authorities were most likely to intervene in physical aggression. The use of social aggression was associated with higher network centrality among adolescents. Developmental maladjustment in late adolescence and early adulthood was primarily predicted by physical aggression.     

Longitudinal relations of emotion knowledge to psychosocial adjustment in European and Chinese American school-age children

The study is the first to examine the developmental trajectory of emotion knowledge as it relates to psychosocial adjustment in a cross-cultural context. European American (EA, n = 68, 28 boys) and Chinese American (CA, n = 62, 31 boys) children and their mothers participated. Children's emotion knowledge was assessed, and their psychosocial adjustment was reported by mothers at three time points when children were 6.5, 7, and 8 years of age. Although EA children had greater emotion knowledge at Time 1, CA children's emotion knowledge grew faster over the following 1.5 years. In addition, emotion knowledge predicted fewer internalizing problems in CA children but predicted fewer externalizing problems in EA children. Thus, emotion knowledge was associated with psychosocial adjustment for both cultural groups, and particularly helpful for children to cope with issues to which they are most vulnerable in their respective cultural contexts. The findings shed critical light on the developmental trajectories of emotion understanding and psychosocial adjustment in specific cultural contexts.     

When Is It Okay to Exclude a Member of the Ingroup? Children's and Adolescents’ Social Reasoning

Social exclusion of those who challenge group norms was investigated by asking children and adolescents, adolescents, age 9–13 years (N = 381), to evaluate exclusion of group members who deviated from group norms. Testing predictions from social reasoning developmental theories of group‐based exclusion, children and adolescents evaluated exclusion based on group norms involving allocation of resources and group traditions about dress code. Exclusion of deviant members was viewed as increasingly wrong with age, but also varied by the type of norm the deviant challenged. Participants who reported disliking a deviant member who wanted to distribute money unequally also found it acceptable to exclude them. Those who disliked deviants who went against norms about dress codes did not think exclusion was warranted. These findings are discussed in the context of children's social‐cognitive development regarding peer rejection as well as the role played by moral judgment and group dynamics.     

What are the Links Between Theory of Mind and Social Relations? Review,Reflections and New Directions for Studies of Typical and Atypical Development

Twenty years after research on children's ‘theory of mind’ began, this field continues to be a leading influence in the study of developmental psychology and psychopathology. In this review we examine the contribution of research on children's theories of mind to our understanding of children's developing social relationships. Evidence shows that for both typical and atypical populations this relationship is neither uniform nor unidirectional. Theory‐of‐mind skills are multifaceted and the nature of the developmental relationship between different aspects is not yet known, and there is evidence that theory‐of‐mind skills both transform and are transformed by interpersonal and family relationships and by language communities. To understand the multifaceted and complex nature of development in this area, we need clearer definitions of the skills under investigation, as well as research designs that capture the transactional nature of the relationship between theory of mind and social relations. Addressing these issues should help to clarify (i) the processes by which children's developing understanding of others is influenced by the social environment, and (ii) issues concerning the specificity of theory‐of‐mind impairments in atypical populations and the processes by which these impairments develop.     

The Role of Peers and Siblings in Toddlers’ Developing Understanding of Incompatible Desires

According to previous research, social experiences with other children might explain why three‐year‐olds are already quite proficient in understanding desires but not beliefs as subjective mental states. This study investigated toddlers’ (N = 50) developing subjective understanding of incompatible desires around the age of 3 years (M = 35.5 months) and the associated social factors (i.e., family demographics, peer, and sibling variables). Results indicated a developmental sequence from understanding desires to understanding desire‐dependent emotions with an unexpected positivity bias in toddlers’ prediction of own emotions. A hierarchical regression model revealed that specific social factors (i.e., reported quality of peer interactions and day care attendance) individually contributed to explaining the variance in children's desire‐reasoning skills. Findings are interpreted as supporting a belief–desire asymmetry, and specific social experiences, such as positive peer interactions and desire conflicts, may promote toddlers’ understanding of incompatible desires as subjective mental states.     

Couple interaction and child social competence: The role of parenting and attachment

The current study examined the association between positive couple interaction and child social competence as mediated through positive parenting and parent–child attachment security. Prospective, longitudinal data came from 209 mothers, fathers, and their biological child. Information regarding observed positive couple interaction, observed positive parenting, and parent–child attachment security were assessed when the child was 2–4 years old, and child social competence was assessed at 5 years old. Mothers and fathers were analyzed separately in the model. Results indicated that for both mothers and fathers, positive couple interaction was indirectly associated with child social competence through positive parenting and parent–child attachment. These pathways remained statistically significant even after child social competence at age 2–4 was taken into account. Results suggest that couple interaction spills over into parenting which impacts parent–child attachment, which is associated with positive child developmental outcomes.     

Learning‐related Social Skills as a Mediator between Teacher Instruction and Child Achievement in Head Start

Using a subsample of the Family and Child Experiences Survey (FACES) 2006, this study examined the associations between the amount of teacher instruction in 292 Head Start classrooms with changes in young children's (n = 936) early academic achievement and learning‐related social skills from ages three to five. In general, during the early years, children exhibited relatively stable academic and learning‐related social skills. Although the amount of teacher instruction did not predict children's short‐term academic growth directly, it did predict it indirectly through improvements in learning‐related social skills, with benefits lasting through the end of kindergarten. These findings demonstrate that gains in children's learning‐related social skills may be necessary before academic gains can be realized.     

The Longitudinal Interplay between Bullying,Victimization, and Social Status: Age‐related and Gender Differences

The current study examined the longitudinal interplay between bullying, victimization, and social status (acceptance, rejection, and perceived popularity) over the course of 1 year. Cross‐lagged path models were estimated for two cohorts, covering grades 3–6 (N = 3904, M age = 11.2 years) and grades 7–9 (N = 4492, M age = 14.4 years). Comparisons between cohorts and by gender were conducted. The results of this study corroborate the complexity of the longitudinal interplay between bullying, victimization, and social status in showing that direction and strength of associations differ by type of peer status, age, and gender. Conclusions cannot be drawn without taking these differences into account. The findings are discussed according to these differences, and directions for future research are provided.     

Fairness decisions in children and early adolescents with and without hearing loss

Although having universal aspects, development of a sense of fairness, a milestone in children's social development, is influenced by social and cultural forces. Yet, it scarcely has been studied in children who are at risk for their social development, let alone in deaf and hard‐of‐hearing (DHH) children, who have limited access to linguistic and social input. This study examined for the first time equity preferences in DHH children compared with hearing counterparts. About 179 children (8–11 years) and early adolescents (12–14 years) played four economic allocation games where they distributed coins between themselves and another child. Participants with and without hearing loss were similar in conditions that entailed non‐costly prosociality or self‐maximization. However, DHH participants showed weaker inequity aversion in more complex conditions: DHH children were more willing to allow other players to receive more coins than themselves, compared with hearing children and to DHH or hearing adolescents, and DHH adolescents were less willing to share resources when it was self‐costly, compared with all other groups. Findings are discussed in light of the tension between norms of social comparison and norms of prosociality, and how they are reflected in developmental trajectories for inequity aversion when access to these norms is limited.     

Ability emotional intelligence and children’s behaviour in the playground

We explored whether emotion understanding promotes positive social functioning in childhood using the ability emotional intelligence (AEI) framework, which defines emotion understanding more broadly than is common in developmental science. The prospective study included children ages 9–11 years who completed a measure of AEI at the start of the school year, and whose playground interactions were observed for one full year. Findings showed that, among girls, low AEI was associated with higher levels of direct aggressive behaviour in the playground; boys and girls high or low in AEI were more likely than their peers to watch others during playground social interactions. Further, higher AEI was associated with indirect aggression in school, suggesting higher AEI during childhood may be associated with the developmental transition from direct to indirect forms of aggression. The implications of the findings for school practice in relation to the teaching of emotion understanding are discussed.     

Psychosocial Precursors and Correlates of Differing Internalizing Trajectories from 3 to 15 Years1

Psychosocial precursors and correlates of parent‐reported internalizing behavior trajectories across the age span of 3–15 years were explored using a community‐based cohort of Australian children. Six internalizing trajectories had previously been identified for both girls (N = 810) and boys (N = 874) in this sample, comprising stable low, high, decreasing, and increasing pathways. Infancy and toddler temperamental traits (inhibition/shyness, irritability), behavior problems, and parent–child relationship difficulties constituted significant risks for subsequent problematic internalizing profiles. Several gender‐specific trends were evident, with temperamental reactivity and shyness, less optimal parenting, and peer difficulties more salient for girls on increasing trajectories whereas externalizing problems were more prominent among boys on increasing trajectories. Factors associated with recovery from elevated symptoms included higher levels of social competence, better parent and peer relations, and more positive school adjustment. Findings suggest that individual characteristics and relationship experiences may be involved in the development and course of internalizing problems.     

Symbols Build Communication and Thought: The Role of Gestures and Words in the Development of Engagement Skills and Social‐emotional Concepts during Toddlerhood

Social skills and symbol skills are positively associated in middle childhood, but the relation between these domains is less clear in newly verbal toddlers. Vygotsky proposed that symbols are both tools for interaction and mental tools for thought. Do symbols help even very young children build skills for interacting with and conceptualizing the social world? Longitudinal data from 108 children and mothers were collected when children were 14, 24, and 36 months. Children's gestures and words during mother–child interactions were used as symbol skill indicators to predict children's abilities to engage others and the number of social‐emotional concepts children portray during play. In a series of growth models, words had a stronger effect on engagement skills whereas early gesture use predicted later development of social‐emotional concepts. Therefore, even in early development, symbols serve as both communication tools and mental tools to construct understanding of the social‐emotional world.     

The vexed link between social capital and social mobility for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people

Overcoming the socio‐economic disparity between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non‐Indigenous Australians is a long‐standing social policy objective: one largely shared by Indigenous people. Achievement will require Indigenous individuals and households to be socially mobile, a process integrally involved with social capital, existing and requisite. The lack of research on Indigenous social mobility or its attendant social capital connections is addressed in this paper through an exploratory analysis of this interaction across three dimensions: distinctive patterns of Indigenous social capital; the transferability of Indigenous social capital; and traversing the social capital divide. The implications drawn, while tentative, indicate that for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people the intersection of the processes of social mobility and social capital is vexed, and contains hazards and costs not fully shared by socially mobile non‐Indigenous households. The Indigenous‐specific factors of a gendered professional class, the identity–social capital link, and Indigenous labour market circumstances all indicate that more research and a more nuanced understanding of Indigenous social mobility is necessary. Social policy recommendations include broadening the concept of cultural leave to include bonding social capital obligations, especially for women, and re‐evaluation of how to support Indigenous career trajectories and transferable skill sets.     

中国的制度变迁、阶级结构转型和收入不平等：1978-2005

本文结合制度主义理论与新马克思主义的阶级分析方法,提出在中国社会分层研究中“把阶级带回来”的观点。根据户口制度、单位制度、干部身份制和私有产权等造成转型时期中国不平等的重要制度性因素,建立一个以对不同形式生产性资产的占有为基础的即新马克思主义取向的中国阶级分类方式,并在经验层面展示了其较之于其他分类法的优越性。研究认为,中国正在发生的制度转型对社会不平等秩序的重塑表现为不同形式的生产性资产,即劳动力、资本、组织、技术/权威等四种所有权作用的相对转变,从而导致阶级结构的转型和贫富差距的拉大。     

Interpersonal skills scale: Development and validation in urbanized sample of adolescents

Interpersonal skills play a vital role in the growth and development of adolescents. The current study explored the experience and manifestation of interpersonal skills in Pakistani adolescents. In phase I, using open‐ended phenomenological approach, key components of interpersonal skills were elicited from 32 adolescents (boys = 16; girls = 16) aged 11–19 years (M = 14.48; SD = 1.06). In phase II, Content Validity Index for items (I‐CVIs) and scale (S‐CVI) was established. In phase III, pilot testing was carried out on 21 adolescents (boys = 11; girls = 10). In Phase IV, a sample of 674 adolescents (boys = 47%; girls = 53%) aged 11–19 years (M = 14.88; SD = 1.33) were tested for psychometric properties of Interpersonal Skills Scale along with Social Intelligence Scale for Adolescents and Self‐Esteem Scale for Children. Exploratory Factor Analysis (n = 221) generated three factors of the Interpersonal Skills Scale social engagement, sociability, and social etiquettes. Confirmatory Factor Analysis (n = 453) also supported the three‐factor structure of the Interpersonal Skills Scale. Furthermore, the scale found to have high internal consistency, construct validity, discriminant validity, split‐half reliability, and test–retest reliability. The results are discussed in the light of factorial structure in the Pakistani cultural context.