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Article
Peer Acceptance and Friendship as Predictors of Early Adolescents' Adjustment Across the Middle School Transition
Merrill-Palmer Quarterly-Journal of Developmental Psychology
  • Julie Newman Kingery, Hobart William Smith Colleges
  • Cynthia A. Erdley, University of Maine - Main
  • Katherine C. Marshall, Hobart William Smith Colleges
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
7-1-2011
Disciplines
Abstract/ Summary

This study examines several aspects of adolescents' pretransition peer relationships as predictors of their adjustment to middle school. Participants were 365 students (175 boys; 99% Caucasian) involved in the Time 1 (the spring of fifth grade) and Time 2 (the fall of sixth grade) assessments. Adolescents completed measures that assessed peer acceptance, number of friends, the quality of a specific mutual friendship, loneliness, depression, self-esteem, and involvement in school. Academic achievement and absentee data were obtained from student files. Regression analyses indicated that the pretransition peer variables predicted posttransition loneliness, self-esteem, school involvement, and academic achievement. The patterns of prediction varied slightly for each adjustment variable, with the most robust relationship being between peer acceptance and achievement. Results of repeated-measures MANOVAs indicated no differential changes in adjustment across time by gender. Implications for including a peer component in programs that prepare students for the middle school transition are discussed.

Citation/Publisher Attribution
Kingery, J.N., Erdley, C.A., & Marshall, K.C. (2011). Peer Acceptance and Friendship as Predictors of Early Adolescents' Adjustment Across the Middle School Transition. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly-Journal of Developmental Psychology, 57, 215-243. Available on publisher's site at http://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/mpq/vol57/iss3/2/
Publisher Statement
Copyright 2011 Wayne State University Press
Version
publisher's version of the published document
Citation Information
Julie Newman Kingery, Cynthia A. Erdley and Katherine C. Marshall. "Peer Acceptance and Friendship as Predictors of Early Adolescents' Adjustment Across the Middle School Transition" Merrill-Palmer Quarterly-Journal of Developmental Psychology Vol. 57 Iss. 3 (2011) p. 215 - 243
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/cynthia_erdley/2/