Peer Victimization,Self‐esteem,and Ego Resilience Types in Adolescents: A Prospective Analysis of Person‐context Interactions

This study examined bidirectional, longitudinal associations between peer victimisation and self‐esteem in adolescents, and tested for moderator effects of undercontrolling, overcontrolling, and ego‐resilient personality types in these associations. Data were used from 774 adolescents ages 11–16 years who participated in a three‐wave (i.e., 2005, 2006, and 2007) longitudinal study. Structural equation modelling analyses in Mplus demonstrated that, controlling for earlier levels of self‐esteem, self‐reported peer victimization was associated with lower self‐esteem across one‐year time intervals. Vice versa, however, low self‐esteem was not predictive of subsequent self‐reported victimization. Evidence was also found for a moderator effect of personality type on the longitudinal associations between self‐esteem and victimization. Only in the subgroup of overcontrolling adolescents was lower self‐esteem related to subsequently higher levels of peer victimization; their undercontrolling and ego‐resilient peers were unaffected.     

Contingent Self‐worth in Chinese Adolescents and Young Adults: Relations with Global Self‐Esteem and Depressive Symptoms

Contingent self‐worth (CSW) is the extent to which an individual's sense of self‐worth is dependent on performance in a particular domain. CSW has been linked to poorer psychological health (e.g., lower global self‐esteem, greater depression and anxiety). However, the majority of work on CSW has been conducted with US college students. Far less is known about the influence of CSW for younger individuals or for non‐Western populations. This study examined relations between CSW domains and two indicators of well‐being (depressive symptoms and global self‐esteem) with Chinese adolescents (ages 13–16) and young adults (ages 19‐22). Results indicated that CSW in the domains of academic performance and others’ approval were positively related to depressive symptoms, whereas CSW in the domain of family support was negatively related to depressive symptoms. Others’ approval CSW was negatively related to self‐esteem for both adolescents and young adults, whereas CSW in the domains of academic performance and family support were related to self‐esteem for adolescents but not young adults. This study indicates that CSW is a meaningful and predictive construct for Chinese youth, and that cultural, environmental, and developmental factors may impact the relations between CSW and psychological health.     

Social Self‐Control,Externalizing Behavior,and Peer Liking Among Children with ADHD‐CT: A Mediation Model

This study investigated the role of externalizing behavior as a mediator of the relation between social self‐control and peer liking among children with attention‐deficit/hyperactivity disorder‐combined type (ADHD‐CT). A model was proposed whereby externalizing behavior would fully statistically account for the direct relation of social self‐control to peer liking. One hundred seventy‐two children ages 7.0–9.9 years with ADHD‐CT were rated by their teachers regarding their social self‐control and by their parents and teachers regarding their rates of externalizing behavior. Same‐sex classmates provided ratings of overall liking. Structural equation modeling was used to assess the proposed model. Results supported the proposed model of externalizing behavior as fully statistically accounting for the relation of social self‐control to peer liking. This study demonstrated the crucial role that externalizing behaviors play in the social impairment commonly seen among children with ADHD‐CT.     

Impact of Childhood Socioeconomic Position on Self‐Rated Health Trajectories of South Korean Adults

The aim of this study was to examine the impact of childhood socioeconomic position (SEP) on adult health trajectory in South Korea. Seven waves of data from the Korea Welfare Panel Study (KOWEPS, 2007–2012; Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs, 2014 ) were analyzed using latent growth curve analysis. Health condition was measured by self‐assessment. The major independent variables were indicators of childhood and adult SEP. The findings suggest that those who perceive their childhood economic condition to be more affluent are more likely to assess their health to be better at the intercept. The insignificant effect of childhood economic condition on the slope and the quadratic term suggest that the initial gap remains over time. On the other hand, a disruption in education as a result of poverty was significantly associated with the intercept, slope, and quadratic term. The results suggest that although the large gap at wave 1 somewhat decreases, the gap in health remains because of the significant quadratic term. Childhood SEP has a a lasting effect on adult health trajectories, after controlling for adult SEP. Significant findings support policies and programs that are targeted to reduce socioeconomic disparities in childhood to enhance equality and public health.     

Contingencies of Self‐worth in Early Adolescence: The Antecedent Role of Perceived Parenting

Contingent self‐esteem (i.e., the degree to which one's self‐esteem is dependent on meeting particular conditions) has been shown to predict a wide range of psychosocial and academic problems. This study extends previous research on contingent self‐esteem by examining the predictive role of perceived parenting dimensions in a sample of early adolescents (N = 240; age range 11–15 years). Additionally, the effect of perceived parenting on contingent self‐esteem is compared with its effect on global self‐esteem. Our main findings showed that both responsiveness and psychological control were unique predictors of global self‐esteem whereas only psychological control uniquely predicted contingent self‐esteem. Although the effect of responsiveness on global self‐esteem was increased when combined with high levels of behavioral control, this effect did not depend on the level of psychological control. The effect of psychological control on contingent self‐esteem, however, generally increased when combined with high levels of responsiveness.     

Aggressive behaviour in adolescence: Links with self‐esteem and parental emotional availability

Aggressive behaviours during adolescence may be predictive of later conduct disorders, hence it is important to early detect their signals and deepen the study of their possible risk factors. In order to address these issues, our study pursued two main objectives: to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Italian adaptation of the Aggression Questionnaire Short‐Form (AQ‐SF), a form never previously used among Italian adolescents; and to investigate the relation among aggressiveness, emotional relationship with both parents and self‐esteem in a sample of adolescents. Our results highlighted that psychometric properties of the Italian AQ‐SF are satisfactory and encourage a wider use of this tool; in addition, we found that self‐esteem plays a mediation role between parental emotional availability and aggression. Prevention efforts should focus on improving the relationship with both parents and strengthening adolescent's self‐esteem.     

Examining individual‐level academic risk and protective factors for foster youth: School engagement,behaviors, self‐esteem,and social skills

Students' school engagement is widely regarded as critical for positive school adjustment and overall academic success. Foster youth persistently face poorer educational outcomes than peers and demonstrate lower levels of school engagement and higher levels of academically threatening behaviors. The goals of the present study were (a) to explore relationships amongst various child‐level correlates of school engagement and problem behaviors—namely, self‐esteem and social skills—and (b) to respectively investigate the protective potential of self‐esteem and social skills in the association between school engagement and behavior problems that threaten educational trajectories. Results indicate significant associations between school engagement and problem behaviors, as well as between self‐esteem, social skills, and school engagement. Further, self‐esteem mediated the association between school engagement and both youth‐ and foster parent‐reported externalizing behavior, and social skills mediated the association between school engagement and both youth‐ and foster parent‐reported externalizing behavior. Implications for future practice, research, and policy are discussed.     

Examining the Relationship between Domestic Violence and Depression among Koreans: The Role of Self‐esteem and Social Support as Mediators

Domestic violence is a prevalent social issue in Korea affecting a significant number of people every day. It is thus important to examine how the experience of domestic violence affects their mental health to better address their needs. Using stress‐coping theory as a theoretical framework, this study examines the domestic violence and depression relationship among Korean men and women. Two aspects of self‐esteem and informal and formal social support are examined as potential mediators of this relationship. The data was the first wave of Korean Welfare Panel Study data including 2477 individuals with experiences of abuse. Structural equation modeling procedures were used for analyses. Domestic violence was significantly associated with self‐worth, self‐deprecation, and depression. The experiences of violence eroded self‐worth while reinforcing self‐deprecation and those with more exposure to violence showed a higher level of depression. Self‐deprecation played a significant role in mediating the effect of domestic violence on depression. However, different findings were yielded for social support. While informal social support was significantly associated with domestic violence, formal social support was not associated with domestic violence. Findings suggest for mental health interventions targeting self‐esteem, particularly the diminution of self‐deprecation in working with the victims. Suggestions for future research and implications for social work are also discussed.     

It's Not Just Being Popular,it's Knowing it,too: The Role of Self‐perceptions of Status in the Associations between Peer Status and Aggression

Moderators of the well‐established association between status and overt and relational aggression were tested in a four‐year longitudinal sample (N = 358) of high school students. Self‐perceptions of popularity were found to moderate the link between actual peer‐perceived popularity and aggression, with adolescents who were both popular and aware of their popular status, scoring highest on peer‐nominated aggression and showing the greatest increases in aggression over time. Self‐perceptions of liking moderated the associations between social preference and aggression as well. Adolescents who saw themselves as disliked were particularly likely to show increases in aggression over time. The moderating effect of self‐perceptions was further moderated by gender in several cases. Findings are discussed in light of Coie's theory of the development of peer status theory. The social‐cognitive elements of high peer status, particularly of perceived popularity, are also highlighted.     

Mother–Child Reminiscing About Peer Experiences and Children's Peer‐related Self‐views and Social Competence

This study examined mother–child reminiscing about children's experiences with peers and its relation to children's peer‐related self‐views and social competence. Sixty‐three mothers and their preschool‐aged children discussed at home two specific past events involving the child and his or her peers, one event being positive and one negative. The children's self‐views in peer relationships were assessed at school during individual interviews, and their social competence was rated by mothers. Both maternal and child participation in the reminiscing, in terms of reminiscing style and content, were uniquely associated with children's peer‐related self‐views and social competence. The results suggest the important role of family narrative practices in children's social development.     

Effects of Defending: The Longitudinal Relations Among Peer‐perceived Defending of Victimized Peers,Victimization, and Liking

Previous research has shown victims of peer aggression to be positively impacted by being defended by peers, but how enacted defending impacts defenders themselves is not thoroughly understood. In this study, the longitudinal associations between peer‐perceived liking, enacted defending, and defender's own victimization were investigated among 336 adolescents (M age = 13.21 years). Peer perceived liking was expected to predict defending. It was also hypothesized that a reputation for defending victimized peers would be related to being perceived as less victimized and more liked over time. Results showed that peer perceived liking was not predictive of defending. Enacted defending was associated with a decrease in victimization over time, but also a decrease in peer‐perceived liking. Defenders may benefit from enacted defending by decreasing their own victimization, but this benefit is nuanced.     

Self‐control,peer preference,and loneliness in Chinese children: A three‐year longitudinal study

The purpose of this study was to explore the longitudinal links among Chinese children's self‐control, social experiences, and loneliness, largely from a developmental cascades perspective (which postulates mechanisms about how effects within a particular domain of functioning can impact across additional domains over time). Participants were N = 1,066 primary school students in Shanghai, P. R. China, who were followed over three years from Grade 3 to Grade 5. Measures of children's behavioral self‐control, peer preference, and loneliness were obtained each year from peer nominations and child self‐reports. Results indicated that as compared with the unidirectional and bidirectional models, the developmental cascade model represented the best fit for the data. Within this model, a number of significant direct and indirect pathways were identified among variables and over time. For example, self‐control was found to indirectly contribute to later decreases in loneliness via a pathway through peer preference. As well, peer preference both directly and indirectly contributed to later increases in self‐control. Finally, loneliness directly led to decreases in self‐control from Grade 3 to Grade 4, but not from Grade 4 to Grade 5. Results are discussed in terms of the implications of self‐control for Chinese children's social and emotional functioning over time.     

You matter to me: important relationships and self‐esteem of adolescents in foster care

This study examined the extent to which relationships with biological mothers, foster parents and peers influenced the self‐esteem of adolescents in foster care. A subsample from the National Survey of Child and Adolescent Well‐Being of adolescents in long‐term foster care was used for this study (n = 188). The findings indicated that when considering relationships with biological mothers, foster parents and peers and controlling for demographic characteristics in one regression model, relationships with peers had the greatest impact on self‐esteem of adolescents. Implications for child welfare and clinical work are discussed.     

The intergenerational continuity of parental conditional regard and its role in mothers’ and adolescents’ contingent self‐esteem and depressive symptoms

Although research has documented the adverse consequences of parental academic conditional regard in different developmental periods, few studies have examined antecedents and, in particular, the possibility of intergenerational continuity of this parenting dimension. The current study aimed to identify patterns of intergenerational similarity in two types of conditional regard (i.e., positive and negative). Additionally, it examined mothers’ and adolescents’ contingent self‐esteem (CSE) and depressive symptoms as outcomes of this process. In total, 211 mothers and their 10‐ to 16‐year‐old adolescents filled out questionnaires assessing perceived conditional regard in the relationship with their own mother (i.e., grandmothers’, and mothers’ conditional positive (PACPR) and negative regard (PACNR)), contingent self‐esteem (i.e., maternal child‐invested CSE and adolescents’ academic CSE), and maternal and adolescents’ depressive symptoms. Results revealed direct intergenerational similarity for PACPR, but not for PACNR. Within generations, PACPR was related positively to CSE, which, in turn, was related positively to depressive symptoms. Moreover, PACNR was related positively to depressive symptoms. Our findings provide preliminary evidence for the intergenerational continuity of conditional regard, which has important consequences because of its relation to CSE and subsequent depressive symptoms within both generations.     

Parent and Peer Restrictions of Opportunities Attenuate the Link between Low Self‐control and Antisocial Behavior

Focusing on parents and peers as restrictors of opportunities, this study tested whether restricted opportunities attenuate the link between low self‐control and antisocial behavior as hypothesized by the General Theory of Crime. Early adolescents (N = 180, M age = 12.04 years, 49.4 percent female, 49 percent European American, 45 percent African American) reported their levels of self‐control, antisocial peer involvement, unsupervised time, parental solicitation, family rules, and involvement in antisocial behavior. Low levels of antisocial peer involvement and high levels of parental supervision, solicitation, and family rules were conceptualized as restricted opportunities for antisocial behavior. Opportunity restrictions attenuated the association between low self‐control and antisocial behavior such that low self‐control was less strongly associated with antisocial behavior when youth experienced less antisocial peer involvement, less unsupervised time, more parental solicitation, and more family rules than when youth experienced more antisocial peer involvement, more unsupervised time, less parental solicitation, and fewer family rules. Results clarify and extend our understanding of the role of restricted opportunities for low self‐control youth in the General Theory of Crime.     

The Stability and Change of Value Structure and Priorities in Childhood: A Longitudinal Study

This longitudinal study explores the stability and change of values in childhood. Children's values were measured in Poland three times (with one‐year intervals) using the Picture Based Values Survey (PBVS‐C; Döring, Blauensteiner, Aryus, Drögekamp, & Bilsky, 2010), developed to measure values differentiated according to the circular model of Schwartz (1992). 801 children (divided into 5 cohorts aged 7, 8, 9, 10, and 11 years at the first measurement occasion) completed the PBVS‐C three times on a yearly basis. Separate analyses were performed for each cohort using the data of the three measurement occasions. Multidimensional scaling revealed that, in children, Schwartz's (1992) circular structure of values is stable and does not change over time. Although priorities of values displayed moderate stability over time, the means changed between the ages of 7 and 11 years. Specifically, latent growth curve modeling revealed changes in children's values hierarchy as indicated by the decrease in the mean level of conservation values and the increase in the mean level of openness to change values. Self‐transcendence and self‐enhancement also changed in different directions. As indicated by mean levels over time, self‐transcendence first increased in importance, slightly decreased, and finally increased again. In contrast, self‐enhancement first decreased in importance, then increased, and finally began to decrease again.     

Depression Among Korean Immigrant Elders Living in Canada and the United States: A Comparative Study

Korean immigrant elders in North America experience a high level of depression. This study explored the correlates of depression among a sample of 245 Korean immigrant elders living in metropolitan cities in Canada (n = 128) and a southwestern state in the United States (n = 117), using a stress-coping framework. Results revealed discrepancies between the 2 subgroups. Years since immigration and number of health concerns were positively associated, and English proficiency was negatively associated with depressive symptoms among Korean immigrant elders in the United States; only health status was significant among Korean immigrant elders in Canada. Implications of the study are presented.     

Longitudinal patterns of anger reactivity and risk‐taking: The role of peer‐context

The current study examined the interplay between children's dispositional anger and susceptibility to peers' influence in increasing children's risk‐taking behaviors. Participants in the current study were children from a larger study of temperament and social–emotional development who were followed across 9, 24, 36, 48, and 60 months. Dispositional anger was measured using mothers' reports across 9 and 48 months. At 60 months, children played a risk‐taking computer game in presence of an unfamiliar peer who watched the child play. The child's risk‐taking was assessed during the game as the unfamiliar peers' reactions were coded based on comments that were peer directed, reflective of praising the target child's performance, or object directed, indicative of excitement toward the game. A latent profile analysis revealed three longitudinal anger profiles across infancy to early childhood: high stable, average stable, and low stable anger. Results suggested that as peers' object‐directed comments predicted risk‐taking independent of children's anger, the association between peer‐directed comments and risk‐taking was dependent on children's dispositional anger. Specifically, when peers praised the target child's performance, children in the high stable anger profile showed increased risk‐taking propensity. Findings are discussed based on the importance of considering both temperamental characteristics and aspects of the peer context in relation to children's risk‐taking.     

The Relationship between Social Defiance,Vindictiveness, Anger,and Brain Morphology in Eight‐year‐old Boys and Girls

The goal of this study is twofold: (1) to assess brain anatomical differences between children meeting diagnostic criteria for oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and healthy controls, and (2) to investigate whether morphological brain characteristics associated with ODD differ in boys and girls. Eight‐year‐old participants (N = 38) were scanned using magnetic resonance imaging. ODD symptoms were assessed using the Dominic‐R interactive. In ODD participants, we observed a significant reduction of gray matter density in the left orbitofrontal cortex—a prefrontal region that plays a pivotal role in emotional self‐regulation and impulse control—and, conversely, an increase in the left temporal area—an area that has been associated with aggressive, impulsive, and antisocial personality. Furthermore, ODD boys showed a reduction of both gray matter density in the left orbitofrontal cortex and of white matter density in the left superior frontal area. The structural abnormalities found in the present study, in particular, the correlation between ODD symptoms and reduction of gray matter density in the left orbitofrontal cortex, may present some evidence for the existence of neuropathology associated with ODD symptoms during childhood. Furthermore, our findings indicate morphometric differences between boys and girls with ODD, which may be associated with gender differences in social behavior in children showing ODD symptoms.     

The Curious Case of Self‐Interest: Inconsistent Effects and Ambivalence toward a Widely Accepted Construct

Self‐interest is widely accepted as a powerful motivator by both academics and laypeople alike. However, research surrounding the self‐interest motive paints a complicated picture of this most important psychological construct. Additionally, research on the social desirability of self‐interest has revealed that despite its widespread acceptance, people do not readily accept that self‐interest drives their own behaviors. This paper reviews the literature on self‐interest and reveals several curious features surrounding its actual effect on helping behaviors, political attitudes and voting, and people's apparent ambivalence toward self‐interest as a motive. It is possible that norms against the expression of self‐interestedness evolved, creating ambivalence towards this widely accepted construct, subsequently affecting its expression on many human behaviors.