In the Context of Adult Support: The Influence of Peer Support on the Psychological Well-Being of Middle-School Students

This study examines the influence of adult and peer support on the psychological well-being of middle-school students. Using data representing 13,843 middle-school students from seven U.S. states, which were collected with the School Success Profile, hierarchical regression analysis is used to examine a hypothesis in 2 models of relationships: continuity/cognitive and compensatory/competition. Results support the continuity/cognitive model, and indicate peer support is an important contributor to middle-school students’ psychological well-being at various levels of adult support. When adult support is low, high levels of peer support do not improve psychological well-being. Implications for research and practice are discussed.