Identifying factors that influence peer aggression and victimization is important because of their high prevalence rates and associated negative outcomes during early adolescence. Limited research has examined the impact of environmental and contextual factors, such as school climate, on peer aggression and victimization. This study longitudinally…

This study aims at disentangling the effects of status generalization and social identity processes on ability perceptions among early adolescents. Double standards theory predicts that people use different standards for making inferences about others' abilities based on social status. Social identity processes, however, imply that people evaluate…

This paper introduces the LIDO, or the Low-Inference Discourse Observation tool, that captures discourse moves produced by students and teachers in whole-classroom discussions. Coding methods are described, followed by analyses that explore validity of the LIDO through correlations among LIDO-coded discourse moves and between LIDO scores and…

To date, little has been known about teachers' success in bullying interventions. Thus, the present study analyzes how successfully teachers intervene in real bullying situations, based on an analysis of 1,996 reports by German students aged between 12 and 15 (49.2% female) from 24 schools. Predictors of success included intervention strategy…

The goal of this study was to examine the unique associations of aggression with peer status in a non-Western context. The moderating effects of peer community and teacher closeness at the classroom level and gender and grade at the individual level were considered. Participants were 1954 third to sixth grade students (M[subscript age] = 9.60…

This study used peer nominations to identify who students ask for help in class. We describe the level of friendship affiliation that students' share with their peer helpers, and their classroom behavior reputations. Participants were 1037 fifth (49%) and sixth (51%) graders with varied gender and ethnic-racial backgrounds (51% girls; 43% White,…

Classrooms are unique and complex work settings in which teachers and students both participate in and contribute to classroom processes. This article describes the measurement phase of a study that examined the social ecology of urban classrooms. Informed by the dimensions and items of an established measure of organizational climate, we designed…

Adolescents growing up in low-income communities experience decreases in school engagement during their transition to middle school due to multiple stressors. Holding goals for their futures increases their resilience, yet research on the types of goals that are most beneficial and on parents' influence on the formation of future goals is limited.…

Victimization in early adolescence can have severe negative consequences later in life. Friendships are especially important in this time period. The present study investigated friendship selection and influence (contagion) processes with regard to victimization, as well as prosocial and aggressive characteristics of victims' friends. Using social…

This study examined relations between intentional self-regulation (ISR) and executive functions (EFs) among 84 Icelandic youth in Grade 6 (mean age 11.7 years; 51% girls) and their contributions to healthy and problematic outcomes a year later. ISR was indicated by the Selection, Optimization and Compensation model (SOC) and Self-Regulated…

In this study, we identified (1) subgroups of youth during middle childhood who displayed distinct profiles of social emotional learning (SEL) skills including cooperation, prosocial behaviors, work habits, emotion regulation, and self-control; and (2) how these profiles predict longitudinal academic and social functioning during early…

This study explored the effects of a middle school physical activity intervention for adolescent girls on the executive functioning involved in science learning. The girls, ages 11 to 14, were at risk for low self-esteem, sedentary lifestyle, and poor health outcomes. Executive function stems from interdependent cognitive control processes that…

This study of 1,601 students in the middle years of schooling (Grades 5-8, each student measured twice, 1 year apart) from 200 classrooms in 44 schools sought to identify factors explaining gains and declines in mathematics engagement at key transition points. In multilevel regression modeling, findings showed that compared with Grade 6 students…

As Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) expands to focus on adolescent populations, the broadly accepted theoretical framework put forth by the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) should be empirically tested for measurement utility. Using longitudinal data from the 4-H Study of Positive Youth Development, we first…

This study examined whether compromised emotional clarity prospectively contributes to maladaptive social behavior (aggression, anxious solitude) and adverse social experiences (low social status, victimization) in early adolescence; gender differences in these effects also were explored. Youth (N = 636, [x-bar] age = 10.94, SD = 0.37) completed a…