scholarly journals Peer Sociometric Status and Personality Development from Middle Childhood to Preadolescence

2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (5) ◽  
pp. 606-626 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ville–Juhani Ilmarinen ◽  
Mari–Pauliina Vainikainen ◽  
Markku Verkasalo ◽  
Jan–Erik Lönnqvist

Sociometric status, the regard that other group members confer to an individual, is one of the most ubiquitous and behaviourally relevant attributes assigned to the person by the social environment. Despite this, its contribution to personality development has received little attention. The present three–wave longitudinal study, spanning the age range 7–13 years ( n = 1222), sought to fill this gap by examining the transactional pathways between peer sociometric status (measured by peer nominations) and Five–Factor personality traits (measured by self–ratings and parent and teacher ratings). Sociometric status prospectively predicted the development of extraversion. By contrast, agreeableness and neuroticism prospectively predicted the development of sociometric status. Furthermore, individual–level stability in extraversion was associated with individual–level stability in sociometric status. The results were robust across different sources of personality ratings. We argue that peer sociometric status in the school classroom is the type of environmental effect that has potential to explain personality development. Because of its stability, broadness, and possible impact across a variety of personality processes, sociometric status can both repetitiously and simultaneously influence the network of multiple inter–correlated micro–level personality processes, potentially leading to a new network equilibrium that manifests in changes at the level of the broad personality trait. © 2019 European Association of Personality Psychology

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ville Juhani Ilmarinen ◽  
Mari-Pauliina Vainikainen ◽  
Markku Verkasalo ◽  
Jan-Erik Lönnqvist

Sociometric status, the regard that other group members confer to an individual, is one of the most ubiquitous and behaviorally relevant attributes assigned to the person by the social environment. Despite this, its contribution to personality development has received little attention. The present three-wave longitudinal study, spanning the age range 7-13 years (n = 1222), sought to fill this gap by examining the transactional pathways between peer sociometric status (measured by peer nominations) and Five-Factor personality traits (measured by self-, parent, and teacher ratings). Sociometric status prospectively predicted the development of extraversion. By contrast, agreeableness and neuroticism prospectively predicted the development of sociometric status. Furthermore, individual-level stability in extraversion was associated with individual-level stability in sociometric status. The results were robust across different sources of personality ratings. We argue that peer sociometric status in the school classroom is the type of environmental effect that has potential to explain personality development. Due to its stability, broadness, and possible impact across a variety of personality processes, sociometric status can both repetitiously and simultaneously influence the network of multiple inter-correlated micro-level personality processes, potentially leading to a new network equilibrium that manifests in changes at the level of the broad personality trait.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Simone Dobbelaar ◽  
Anna C. K. van Duijvenvoorde ◽  
Michelle Achterberg ◽  
Mara van der Meulen ◽  
Eveline A. Crone

Developing social skills is essential to succeed in social relations. Two important social constructs in middle childhood, prosocial behavior and reactive aggression, are often regarded as separate behaviors with opposing developmental outcomes. However, there is increasing evidence for the co-occurrence of prosociality and aggression, as both might indicate responsivity to the social environment. Here, we tested whether a bi-dimensional taxonomy of prosociality and reactive aggression could predict internalizing and externalizing problems over time. We re-analyzed data of two well-validated experimental tasks for prosociality (the Prosocial Cyberball Game) and reactive aggression (the Social Network Aggression Task) in a developmental population sample (n = 496, 7–9 years old). Results revealed no associations between prosociality and reactive aggression, confirming the independence of those constructs. Interestingly, although prosociality and reactive aggression independently did not predict problem behavior, the interaction of both was negatively predictive of changes in externalizing problems over time. Specifically, only children who scored low on both prosociality and reactive aggression showed an increase in externalizing problems 1 year later, whereas levels of externalizing problems did not change for children who scored high on both types of behavior. Thus, our results suggest that at an individual level, reactive aggression in middle childhood might not always be maladaptive when combined with prosocial behavior, thereby confirming the importance of studying social competence across multiple dimensions.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dan P. McAdams ◽  
Kali Trzesniewski ◽  
Jennifer Lilgendahl ◽  
Veronica Benet-Martinez ◽  
Richard W. Robins

Research on self and identity has greatly enhanced personality science by directing inquiry more deeply into the person’s conscious mind and more expansively outward into the social environments that contextualize individual differences in behavior, thought, and feeling. After delineating key concepts and offering reasons why personality psychologists should care about self and identity processes, we highlight important empirical discoveries that are of special relevance to personality science in the areas of (1) self-insight, (2) self-conscious emotions, (3) self-esteem, (4) narrative identity, and (5) the role of culture in shaping self, identity, and the integration of personality. We anticipate that future research will also move vigorously to (1) develop more comprehensive and precise accounts of how life experiences influence the development of self and identity, (2) explore more fully how the brain builds a sense of self, and (3) harness what we know about self and identity to improve people’s lives and promote personality development.


2018 ◽  
Vol 44 (10) ◽  
pp. 1502-1518 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jared L. Ladbury ◽  
Verlin B. Hinsz

Group outcomes are difficult to model and predict using individual-level metrics. We use shared cognition concepts and the social relations model to predict cooperative group outcomes in two social dilemmas to test whether social projection or consensus among group members would best predict cooperation. Group-level variance components derived from the social relations model were used as indices of social projection and consensus. Groups played five rounds of two social dilemmas and predicted their partners’ behavior on the following round. Results demonstrate that participants expect other group members to respond to the situation like the participant will and that shared expectations predict less competitive group behavior, but only when group members’ expectations have little to no variance. This article demonstrates the utility of the social relations model in predicting group-level outcomes from individual inputs, as well as providing novel findings regarding the complex effects of shared expectations on collective outcomes.


2016 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 31-44 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Emily Durbin ◽  
Brian M. Hicks ◽  
Daniel M. Blonigen ◽  
Wendy Johnson ◽  
William G. Iacono ◽  
...  

We explored patterns of self–reported personality trait change across late childhood through young adulthood in a sample assessed up to four times on the lower order facets of Positive Emotionality, Negative Emotionality (NEM), and Constraint (CON). Multilevel modelling analyses were used to describe both group– and individual–level change trajectories across this time span. There was evidence for nonlinear age–related change in most traits, and substantial individual differences in change for all traits. Gender differences were detected in the change trajectories for several facets of NEM and CON. Findings add to the literature on personality development by demonstrating robust nonlinear change in several traits across late childhood to young adulthood, as well as deviations from normative patterns of maturation at the earliest ages. Copyright © 2015 European Association of Personality Psychology


2013 ◽  
Vol 221 (4) ◽  
pp. 252-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oliver Christ ◽  
Frank Asbrock ◽  
Kristof Dhont ◽  
Thomas F. Pettigrew ◽  
Ulrich Wagner

The effect of the intergroup climate on acculturation preferences among host-majority and immigrant group members has been long acknowledged in the acculturation literature. Only recently, however, research has started to directly examine the effect of the intergroup climate on acculturation preferences. In the present research, we aimed to contribute to this new and important line of research by adopting a multilevel approach to examine the effect of the intergroup climate (social context level of analysis) on immigrants’ acculturation preferences (individual level of analysis) over and above individual-level predictors of acculturation preferences. Based on recent cross-sectional survey data from Germany, we examined the acculturation preferences (cultural maintenance and maintenance of intergroup relations) of members of immigrant groups (immigrants from non-Western countries; N individual level = 317) living in different districts in Germany (N district-level = 179). On the social context level, we used the mean prejudice- and acculturation preferences-scores of the German respondents (N = 3,495) as proxies for the intergroup climate within these districts. Results of multilevel path analysis showed that on the context level, a negative intergroup climate (i.e., a higher amount of prejudice of the German respondents within the districts) was related to a stronger desire for cultural maintenance among the immigrants. The potential implications of a hostile intergroup climate for the acculturation process are discussed.


2017 ◽  
Vol 43 (5) ◽  
pp. 662-677 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emma F. Thomas ◽  
Catherine E. Amiot ◽  
Winnifred R. Louis ◽  
Alice Goddard

This research integrates self-determination theory and the social identity approach to investigate the notion of collective (group level) self-determination, and to test how the agent of intergroup help (helping initiated by a group representative versus group members) shapes group members’ motives and support for intergroup helping. Study 1 ( N = 432) demonstrates that collective self-determination predicts support for intergroup helping, group pride, and well-being, over and above individual-level self-determined motivation. Study 2 ( N = 216) confirmed that helping by group members was seen as more collectively self-determined than helping by a group representative, producing effects on pride, well-being, and support. Study 3 ( N = 124) explores a qualifier of these effects: People who identify more strongly with the leader who is providing the help also experience representative helping as more collectively self-determined, thereby promoting well-being, group pride, and support. Findings highlight the value of integrating self-determination theory with intergroup theories to consider collective aspects of self-determination.


2017 ◽  
Vol 31 (3) ◽  
pp. 208-219 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ville–Juhani Ilmarinen ◽  
Mari–Pauliina Vainikainen ◽  
Markku Johannes Verkasalo ◽  
Jan–Erik Lönnqvist

Even though homophily (love of the same) is often thought of as a standard feature of friendships, the empirical evidence for attraction based on personality trait similarity is mixed at best. One reason for the inconsistent findings across studies could be variation in the large–scale social environment in which the studies have been conducted. We investigated whether diversity in the everyday social ecologies of 7– to 8–year–old children ( N = 549) moderates whether friendships are formed on the basis of similar personality traits and similar levels of Cognitive ability. Moderated polynomial regression and response surface analyses showed that classroom size moderated homophily based on Openness to Experience: children similar in Openness were more likely to form friendship ties, but only in larger classrooms. Moreover, we found homophily for Cognitive ability, especially among girls. The results for Openness and Cognitive ability were independent of each other. We discuss the social relevance of trait Openness and the notion that capacity to reciprocate underlies homophily based on Cognitive ability. Copyright © 2017 European Association of Personality Psychology


1999 ◽  
Vol 58 (4) ◽  
pp. 233-240 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anouk Rogier ◽  
Vincent Yzerbyt

Yzerbyt, Rogier and Fiske (1998) argued that perceivers confronted with a group high in entitativity (i.e., a group perceived as an entity, a tight-knit group) more readily call upon an underlying essence to explain people's behavior than perceivers confronted with an aggregate. Their study showed that group entitativity promoted dispositional attributions for the behavior of group members. Moreover, stereotypes emerged when people faced entitative groups. In this study, we replicate and extend these results by providing further evidence that the process of social attribution is responsible for the emergence of stereotypes. We use the attitude attribution paradigm ( Jones & Harris, 1967 ) and show that the correspondence bias is stronger for an entitative group target than for an aggregate. Besides, several dependent measures indicate that the target's group membership stands as a plausible causal factor to account for members' behavior, a process we call Social Attribution. Implications for current theories of stereotyping are discussed.


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