René Veenstra
Biographic Data
| ID | 90472 |
|---|---|
| NAME | René Veenstra |
| GIVEN NAMES | René |
| FAMILY NAME | Veenstra |
| SIGNATURE | VEENSTRA R |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Groningen |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-6686-6307 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 107 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 852 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 107 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2005 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 15 |
Harnessing peer influence: A summary and synthesis of social network and peer-led intervention research
This article synthesizes recent research on social network dynamics and peer-led interventions to address adolescent behaviors in five domains: bullying, internalizing problems, substance use, healthy lifestyles, and sexual behaviors. Social network studies highlight the role of peers in shaping norms, behaviors, and group dynamics. Peer-led interventions take advantage of these dynamics by training influential peers to promote positive behaviors…
Understanding the Role of School Policies in Sexual Orientation- and Gender Modality-Based Disparities in Victimization and School Unsafety
Sexually and gender-diverse youth still experience higher victimization rates and feelings of unsafety compared to their heterosexual, cisgender peers. Whilst it is known that individual policies might attenuate these disparities, policies do not exist in a vacuum. It remains unclear which role combinations of school policies plays in this. This research aims at bridging this gap in two studies. In Study 1, combinations of school policies were ex…
Who Fancies Whom? Investigating Adolescent Romantic Interests
Having or being a crush is a little-studied aspect of adolescent romantic experiences. Guided by sexual selection theory, this study addresses the question of “who fancies whom?” by examining which adolescents are most fancied, who fancies others the most, and how romantic interest relates to (dis)similarities between individuals. Cross-sectional data were collected from the Peers and Emergence of Adolescent Romance (PEAR) study, which included 1…
From peers to partners: The peer‐context origins of adolescent heterosexual romance
Romantic partnerships are highly influential for adolescent development, but many questions remain as to how and with whom such relationships emerge. By adopting a dynamic social network perspective, this study furthers our understanding of the peer‐related precursors to heterosexual adolescent romance. Multivariate statistical network models are applied to unique longitudinal data on 1919 Dutch adolescents' ( M age = 14.9, SD age = 1.6; 52% girl…
On risks and rewards: A longitudinal network analysis of defending and popularity in late childhood
Encouraging bystanders to act as defenders is a key element of many antibullying programs. However, it is unclear how defending affects social status (popularity) in the peer group. In addition, the relational nature of popularity and defending has not been considered. This study addresses this gap with a longitudinal multiplex social network approach to examine how defending relationships and popularity nominations coevolve in a sample of 81 ele…
Fatherhood and Reoffending after Release from Prison: The Importance of Co-Residing With a Partner and Children
Little is known about the link between fatherhood and reoffending among people released from prison. This study examined the association between fatherhood, residential status, and registered reconviction rates using data from a Dutch pre-trial prison cohort sample ( N = 845, 42.5% fathers). The results show that fathers who co-resided with a partner and children 6 months after release from prison were significantly less likely to be reconvicted …
The role of defenders' and victims' popularity in the effectiveness of defending in bullying interactions: A longitudinal social network study
Peer defending is widely promoted as a strategy to reduce bullying, but few studies have investigated whether having more defenders decreases victimization over time from the victim's perspective. This social network study examined the longitudinal association between nominating more defenders and subsequent victimization among (early) adolescents and tested whether this relation is moderated by the popularity status of the defender and the victi…
The Dominance of Liking: Uncovering Dyadic and Reputational Effects of Peer and Perceived Teacher Likes and Dislikes on Friendship Dynamics Among Chinese Adolescents
While previous research suggests that peer and teacher preferences are linked to adolescents’ peer relationships, the specific impact of peer and teacher (dis)liking on adolescents’ friendship networks is not fully understood. This study used longitudinal social network analysis to examine how peer (dis)liking and perceptions of teacher (dis)liking predicted friendship selection among Chinese adolescents. Questionnaires were administered to a sam…
No Evidence of Selection or Influence on Political Attitudes: Findings From the Swiss StudentLife Study
This study examines whether selection, deselection, and influence processes contribute to political homogeneity in young adults. Political similarity in newly formed friendships and that in enduring friendships are distinguished. Using two cohorts from the Swiss StudentLife Study ( N = 921; M age at baseline = 20.1, SD = 3.6; 18.4% female; 29.0% non-Swiss) and applying stochastic actor-oriented models, the coevolution of friendships, defined as a…
Experiences of fatherhood in prison: A thematic analysis of differences between fathers in a family approach programme and a comparison group
Various programmes have been implemented in prisons to strengthen parental involvement and parent–child relationships during imprisonment. In-depth insights into such programmes are limited. This qualitative study compared the experiences of two groups of imprisoned fathers in the Netherlands: fathers who participated in a family approach programme ( N = 10) and fathers in a comparison group ( N = 29). Based on a thematic analysis, four key diffe…
Angry or neutral, it does not matter to me: Implicit processing of facial emotions is not related to peer victimization experiences
The aim of this study was to examine whether prolonged victimization relates to differential processing of emotions. Based on the social information processing theory, it was hypothesized that prolonged victimization would modulate emotion processing, such that victimization relates to a heightened attentional focus toward negative facial expressions and increased amygdala activation in response to negative facial expressions. We targeted a uniqu…
How do victims of bullying develop depression? Testing interpersonal style to explain the victimization‐depression link
This study tested to what extent the relation between bullying victimization and future symptoms of depression could be explained by victims being more hostile and less assertive than non-involved individuals. Data came from waves 2-4 of the Dutch TRacking Adolescents' Individual Lives Survey (TRAILS). Participants' bullying experiences were assessed at age 13, interpersonal style at age 16, and depression symptoms at age 19. Mediation analyses w…
Students’ School and Psychological Adjustment in Classrooms with Positive and Negative Leaders
Positive and negative leadership styles may influence classroom norms and be related to the school and psychological adjustment of children in general, and victims in particular. This study tested the relation between leadership styles and children’s adjustment, and the moderating effects of leadership on the association between self-reported victimization and school and psychological adjustment (self-esteem, social anxiety, and depressive sympto…
A New School, a Fresh Start? Change and Stability in Peer Relationships and Academic Performance in the Transition from Primary to Secondary School
Previous studies on peer relationships in school transitions neglected individual differences, or did not examine the relation with academic performance in secondary school. This study followed 649 students from their last year of primary school to their first year in secondary school ( M age at T1 = 11.6 ( SD = 0.6); 53.6% girls). Results revealed that students became more attached to peers, less lonely, and were stable in victimization across t…
The Sexual Double Standard and Adolescent Stigma: A Sociometric and Comparative Approach
This study applied a sociometric approach to examine the traditional sexual double standard within a sample of Dutch adolescents (N = 1,175; 53.8% females; Mage = 14.75). Drawing on script theory and the key concept of social stigma, this study examined associations between self-reported sexual partnerships and three measures of peer preference: (1) received friendship nominations, (2) peer dislike nominations, and (3) perceived popularity. Resul…
Parents on the Sidelines: The Role of Parental Directing in Chinese Adolescents’ Friendship Dynamics Related to Academic Achievement, Aggression, and Prosocial Behavior
Adolescents’ peer interactions strongly influence their school behavior, raising the question of whether parents can still direct adolescents’ friendship choices or whether they are mostly on the sidelines. Chinese cultural values emphasize the importance of having “good” friends, raising questions about adolescents’ adherence to parental direction of friendships. This study examined friendship dynamics among seventh and eighth graders in central…
The role of academic performance, prosocial behaviour and friendships on adolescents' preferred studying partners: A longitudinal social network analysis
BackgroundPeers constitute an important developmental context for adolescent academic behaviour providing support and resources to either promote or discourage attitudes and behaviours that contribute to school success. When looking for academic help, students may prefer specific partners based on their social goals regarding academic performance.AimsBased on the social goals for wanting to achieve academically (e.g., studying to be with friends,…
Straatintimidatie. En dan? Een kwantitatief onderzoek naar de gevolgen van seksuele straatintimidatie van studenten in Groningen
Street harassment. So what? A quantitative study of the consequences of sexual street harassment of college students in Groningen Sexual harassment in the street is a form of microaggression that takes many different forms, including whistling, hissing, yelling, insulting, asking for sex, chasing, or cornering. Sexual street harassment is a social problem. A material risk of using the public realm is that some may abuse it (e.g., groping a strang…
Does having vulnerable friends help vulnerable youth? The co-evolution of friendships, victimization, and depressive symptoms in Chinese adolescents' social networks
This study examined whether having vulnerable friends helps or hurts victimized and depressed (i.e., vulnerable) adolescents and whether this depends on classroom supportive norms. Students (n = 1461, 46.7% girls, 93.4% Han nationality) were surveyed four times from seventh and eighth grade (M age = 13 years) in 2015 and 2016 in Central China. Longitudinal social network analyses indicated that having vulnerable friends can both hurt and help vul…
Development and Validation of the Sexual Minority Adolescent Rejection Sensitivity Scale
Because no measure for sexual orientation-related rejection sensitivity (RS) for adolescents exists, we aimed to develop and validate the Sexual Minority Adolescent Rejection Sensitivity Scale (SMA-RSS). In Study 1, interviews with 22 sexual minority youth were conducted ( M age = 18.86, SD = 3.03). Based on these interviews, 29 scenarios were developed as potential items for the SMA-RSS. In Study 2, exploratory factor analyses were conducted on …
Positive and Negative Leadership in Late Childhood: Similarities in Individual but Differences in Interpersonal Characteristics
Previous research has shown that leadership is associated not only with positive but also with negative characteristics and behaviors; knowledge of the similarities and differences between positive and negative leaders remains insufficient. This study aimed to examine (1) the existence of different subtypes of leaders and (2) to what extent these leaders differed on individual and interpersonal characteristics. The sample contained 9213 students …
Adolescent friendship, cross-sexuality ties, and attitudes toward sexual minorities: A social network approach to intergroup contact
On the microfoundations of the link between classroom social norms and behavioral development
This article focuses on the link between social norms and behavioral development as presented in research on norms regarding bullying and aggression. The aim is to present a conceptual framework for how classroom norms may explain children’s decisions to defend others or refrain from defending. Norms emerge from group consensus about what is appropriate in given social circumstances, and can also shape, constrain, and redirect behavior at the ind…
The relation between defending, (dis)liking, and the classroom bullying norm: A cross-sectional social network approach in late childhood
This study investigates the extent to which defending victims of bullying depends on liking and disliking and its relation with the classroom bullying norm (descriptive and popularity) in a sample of 1,272 students (50.8% boys) in 48 fifth-grade classrooms. Social network analysis with bivariate exponential random graph modelings showed that children are more likely to defend victims whom they like, who like them, and who are liked by the same cl…
Introduction to the special section on social norms and behavioral development
This introduction outlines the goals for the special section on social norms and behavioral development. The study of social norms has attracted much interest in peer relations research, and has turned attention to group-level processes, often defined based on the classroom, which create and sustain shared meanings that impact adolescent behavioral and social adjustment. Norms can be differentiated in three ways. First, prescriptive or injunctive…
Network–Behavior Dynamics
Researchers have become increasingly interested in disentangling selection and influence processes. This literature review provides context for the special issue on network–behavior dynamics. It brings together important conceptual, methodological, and empirical contributions focusing on longitudinal social network modeling. First, an overview of mechanisms underlying selection and influence is given. After a description of the shortcomings of pr…
Bullying and Victimization in Elementary Schools: A Comparison of Bullies, Victims, Bully/Victims, and Uninvolved Preadolescents
Research on bullying and victimization largely rests on univariate analyses and on reports from a single informant. Researchers may thus know too little about the simultaneous effects of various independent and dependent variables, and their research may be biased by shared method variance. The database for this Dutch study was large (N = 1,065) and rich enough to allow multivariate analysis and multi-source information. In addition, the effect o…
Univariate and multivariate models of positive and negative networks: Liking, disliking, and bully–victim relationships
Empirical test of bullies' status goals: Assessing direct goals, aggression, and prestige
The literature suggests that status goals are one of the driving motivations behind bullying behavior, yet this conjecture has rarely if ever been examined empirically. This study assessed status goals in three ways, using dyadic network analysis to analyze the relations and goals among 10–11 and 14–15 year olds in 22 school classes ( N boys=225; N girls=277). As a validation bullies were contrasted with victims. Bullies had direct status goals (…
Influence and Selection Processes in Weapon Carrying During Adolescence: The Roles of Status, Aggression, and Vulnerability
The role of peers in weapon carrying (guns, knives, and other weapons) inside and outside the school was examined in this study. Data stem from a longitudinal study of a high‐risk sample of male students (7th to 10th grade; N = 167) from predominantly Hispanic low‐socio‐economic‐status schools in the United States. Longitudinal social‐network models were used to test whether similarity in weapon carrying among friends results from peer influence …
Same-gender and cross-gender peer acceptance and peer rejection and their relation to bullying and helping among preadolescents: Comparing predictions from gender-homophily and goal-framing approaches
The relation between bullying and helping and same-gender and cross-gender peer acceptance and peer rejection was examined in a sample of preadolescents aged 11 and 12 years (N=1,065). The authors tested predictions from a gender-homophily approach vs. predictions from a goal-framing approach in which acceptance and rejection are seen as being generated by approach and avoidance goals, respectively. For preadolescents, both approaches predicted a…
Basking in Reflected Glory and Its Limits: Why Adolescents Hang Out With Popular Peers
The goal of this study was to examine whether popularity and likability were related to associating with popular peers in adolescence. Participants were 3,312 adolescents (M age=13.60 years) from 172 classrooms in 32 schools. Four types of peer affiliations of the participants with the popular peers in their classrooms were distinguished: “best friends,”“respected,”“wannabes,” and “unrelated.” Two types of benefits of affiliating with high-status…
Parental acceptance of children's intimate ethnic outgroup relations: The role of culture, status, and family reputation
Forms and Functions of Aggression in Adolescent Friendship Selection and Influence: A Longitudinal Social Network Analysis
Aggressive children are known to have friends. However, less is known about the impact of aggression on friendship development and how this can differ for overt and relational (i.e., the forms) and instrumental and reactive (i.e., the functions) aggression. This longitudinal study utilized the forms and functions perspective on aggression to assess social selection and influence in adolescents' (N = 337, 12–14 years) friendship networks. Instrume…
First selection, then influence: Developmental differences in friendship dynamics regarding academic achievement
This study concerns peer selection and influence dynamics in early adolescents' friendships regarding academic achievement. Using longitudinal social network analysis (RSiena), both selection and influence processes were investigated for students' average grades and their cluster-specific grades (i.e., language, exact, and social cluster). Data were derived from the SNARE (Social Network Analysis of Risk behavior in Early adolescence) study, usin…
The Relation Between Popularity and Aggressive, Destructive, and Norm‐Breaking Behaviors: Moderating Effects of Athletic Abilities, Physical Attractiveness, and Prosociality
The aim of this study was to examine the relations between popularity and different types of aggressive, destructive, and norm‐breaking behaviors in a large cross‐sectional sample of adolescents ( N =3,312, M age=13.60). We were interested in the extent to which the relations of these behaviors with popularity were moderated by positive features (i.e., athletic abilities, physical attractiveness, and prosociality). From a goal‐framing perspective…
Bullying in Classrooms: Participant Roles From a Social Network Perspective
The aim of this research was to investigate if and how the group process of bullying can be examined using a social network perspective. In two studies, bullying was investigated using a social network version of the participant‐role questionnaire. Study 1 explored the social network structure of one classroom in detail. The findings provide evidence that ingroup and outgroup effects are important in explaining the group process of bullying, and …
Same-Gender and Cross-Gender Likeability: Associations With Popularity and Status Enhancement: The TRAILS study
This study examined the associations of popularity, substance use, athletic abilities, physical attractiveness, and physical and relational aggression with likeability by same-gender and cross-gender peers among early adolescents ( N = 3,312; M age = 13.60, with 92.7% of the participants in the 12-14 age range). Data collection consisted of peer nominations in 172 classrooms of 34 secondary schools. Taking a goal-framing perspective, it was argue…
Who helps whom? Investigating the development of adolescent prosocial relationships
We investigated adolescent prosocial relations by examining social networks based on the question "Who helps you (e.g., with homework, with repairing a flat [bicycle] tire, or when you are feeling down?)." The effects of individual characteristics (academic achievement, symptoms of depressive mood, and peer status) on receiving help and giving help were examined, and we investigated the contribution of (dis)similarity between adolescents to the d…
Extended intergroup friendships within social settings: The moderating role of initial outgroup attitudes
The current study hypothesized that extended intergroup friendships improve outgroup attitudes in particular for people with initially unfavorable outgroup attitudes, and for those without direct intergroup friendships. In contrast, building on structural balance theory, it was hypothesized that extended contact in small social settings may also be related to less favorable outgroup attitudes. Hypotheses were tested longitudinally among Dutch stu…
Aggressive and Prosocial Peer Norms: Change, Stability, and Associations With Adolescent Aggressive and Prosocial Behavior Development
This longitudinal study examined the extent to which the development of prosocial and aggressive peer norms was related to individual prosocial and aggressive behavior development across the first year of secondary education (three waves, n = 1,134 adolescents from 51 classes, M age = 12.66). A distinction was made between descriptive norms (the aggregated average peer-perceived behavior within the classroom) and status norms (the within-classroo…
Friendships and outgroup attitudes among ethnic minority youth: The mediating role of ethnic and host society identification
The Role of Prosocial and Aggressive Popularity Norm Combinations in Prosocial and Aggressive Friendship Processes
Prior work has shown that popular peers can set a powerful norm for the valence and salience of aggression in adolescent classrooms, which enhances aggressive friendship processes (selection, maintenance, influence). It is unknown, however, whether popular peers also set a norm for prosocial behavior that can buffer against aggressive friendship processes and stimulate prosocial friendship processes. This study examined the role of prosocial and …
The role of academic status norms in friendship selection and influence processes related to academic achievement
This study examined the role of academic status norms in friendship selection and influence processes related to academic achievement across the 2nd year of secondary school (SNARE project; N = 1,549 students from 70 classes; M age = 13.69 years). Academic status norms were operationalized as the class-level correlation between academic achievement and 4 types of peer status: popularity, acceptance, unpopularity, and rejection. Longitudinal socia…
Structure Matters: The Role of Clique Hierarchy in the Relationship Between Adolescent Social Status and Aggression and Prosociality
Peer cliques form an important context for the social development of adolescents. Although clique members are often similar in social status, also within cliques, status differences exist. How differences in social status between clique members are related to behaviors of its individual members is rather unknown. This study examined to what extent the relationship of individual social status (i.e., perceived popularity) with aggression and prosoc…
Bullying and Victimization Trajectories in the First Years of Secondary Education: Implications for Status and Affection
Bullying is known to be associated with social status, but it remains unclear how bullying involvement over time relates to social position (status and affection), especially in the first years at a new school. The aim of this study was to investigate whether (the development of) bullying and victimization was related to the attainment of status (perceived popularity) and affection (friendships, acceptance, rejection) in the first years of second…
Disparities in Depressive Symptoms Between Heterosexual and Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Youth in a Dutch Cohort: The TRAILS Study
Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) youth experience elevated levels of depressive symptoms compared to heterosexual youth. This study examined how differences in depressive symptoms between heterosexual and LGB youth developed from late childhood to early adulthood. The association between sexual orientation and depressive symptoms was estimated from age 11 to 22 using data from the TRacking Adolescents' Individual Lives Survey, a longitudinal Dutc…
Peer Group Status of Gender Dysphoric Children: A Sociometric Study
In this sociometric study, we aimed to investigate the social position of gender-referred children in a naturalistic environment. We used a peer nomination technique to examine their social position in the class and we specifically examined bullying and victimization of gender dysphoric children. A total of 28 children (14 boys and 14 girls), referred to a gender identity clinic, and their classmates (n = 495) were included (M age, 10.5 years). R…
Multidimensional similarity in multiplex networks: Friendships Between Same- And Cross-Gender Bullies and Same- And Cross-Gender Victims
Similar peers are more likely to become friends, but it remains unclear how the combination of multiple characteristics, known as multidimensional similarity, influences friendships. This study aimed to investigate whether similarity in gender (attribute) and bullying or victimization (network position) contributes to friendships. The school-level networks of friendships and victim-bully relationships in 17 Dutch elementary schools (2,130 student…
The Interplay Between Adolescents' Friendships and the Exchange of Help: A Longitudinal Multiplex Social Network Study
The aim of this study was to unravel the interrelatedness of friendship and help, and to examine the characteristics of friendship and help networks. The effects of mutual versus one-sided help relations on friendship initiation and maintenance, and vice versa, were examined. Friendship and help networks were analyzed (N = 953 students; 41 classrooms; M age = 12.7). The results illustrate that friendship and help networks show some similarities, …
Differences in Undercoverage and Nonresponse between City Neighbourhoods in a Telephone Survey
Two explanations of differences in undercoverage and nonresponse between neighbourhoods in a telephone survey among the inhabitants of the City of Groningen were studied: differences in population composition between neighbourhoods or in their social disorganization. Logistic multilevel analyses were performed on a sample of 7,000 inhabitants and all 14 city neighbourhoods. Differences in undercoverage and nonresponse between neighbourhoods could…
Bullying and Victimization in Elementary Schools: A Comparison of Bullies, Victims, Bully/Victims, and Uninvolved Preadolescents
Research on bullying and victimization largely rests on univariate analyses and on reports from a single informant. Researchers may thus know too little about the simultaneous effects of various independent and dependent variables, and their research may be biased by shared method variance. The database for this Dutch study was large (N = 1,065) and rich enough to allow multivariate analysis and multi-source information. In addition, the effect o…
The Dyadic Nature of Bullying and Victimization: Testing a Dual-Perspective Theory
For this study, information on Who Bullies Who was collected from 54 school classes with 918 children (M age = 11) and 13,606 dyadic relations. Bullying and victimization were viewed separately from the point of view of the bully and the victim. The two perspectives were highly complementary. The probability of a bully–victim relationship was higher if the bully was more dominant than the victim, and if the victim was more vulnerable than the bul…
Preschool Behavioral and Social-Cognitive Problemsas Predictors of (Pre)adolescent Disruptive Behavior
This article describes preschool social understanding and difficult behaviors (hot temper, disobedience, bossiness and bullying) as predictors of oppositional defiant disorder (ODD) and aggressive conduct disorder (ACD) in a Dutch population sample of (pre)adolescents (N = 1943), measured at age 10-12 and at age 13-15. ODD and ACD were assessed by the Child Behavior Checklist and the Youth Self-Report, preschool behavior was evaluated by the pare…
Same-gender and cross-gender peer acceptance and peer rejection and their relation to bullying and helping among preadolescents: Comparing predictions from gender-homophily and goal-framing approaches
The relation between bullying and helping and same-gender and cross-gender peer acceptance and peer rejection was examined in a sample of preadolescents aged 11 and 12 years (N=1,065). The authors tested predictions from a gender-homophily approach vs. predictions from a goal-framing approach in which acceptance and rejection are seen as being generated by approach and avoidance goals, respectively. For preadolescents, both approaches predicted a…
Beyond the Class Norm: Bullying Behavior of Popular Adolescents and its Relation to Peer Acceptance and Rejection
This study examined to what extent bullying behavior of popular adolescents is responsible for whether bullying is more or less likely to be accepted or rejected by peers (popularity-norm effect) rather than the behavior of all peers (class norm). Specifically, the mean level of bullying by the whole class (class norm) was split into behavior of popular adolescents (popularity-norm) and behavior of non-popular adolescents (non-popularity-norm), a…
Childhood-Limited Versus Persistent Antisocial Behavior: Why Do Some Recover and Others Do Not? The TRAILS Study
Possible differences between childhood-limited antisocial youth and their stable high-antisocial counterparts were examined. Children were 11 years old at wave 1 (T1) and 13.5 at wave 2 (T2). At both waves, the same parent, teacher, and self-reports of antisocial behavior were used. Stable highs and childhood-limited antisocial youth differed somewhat in family and individual background. Stable highs had less effortful control, perceived more ove…
Parental Divorce and Offspring Depressive Symptoms: Dutch Developmental Trends During Early Adolescence
In this study, we investigated if the association between parental divorce and depressive symptoms changes during early adolescence and if developmental patterns are similar for boys and girls. Data were collected in a prospective population cohort of Dutch adolescents (N = 2,149), aged 10 - 15 years. Outcome variables were self-reported and parent-reported depressive symptoms. The effects of divorce were adjusted for parental depression. In both…
Forms and Functions of Aggression in Adolescent Friendship Selection and Influence: A Longitudinal Social Network Analysis
Aggressive children are known to have friends. However, less is known about the impact of aggression on friendship development and how this can differ for overt and relational (i.e., the forms) and instrumental and reactive (i.e., the functions) aggression. This longitudinal study utilized the forms and functions perspective on aggression to assess social selection and influence in adolescents' (N = 337, 12–14 years) friendship networks. Instrume…
The Relation Between Popularity and Aggressive, Destructive, and Norm‐Breaking Behaviors: Moderating Effects of Athletic Abilities, Physical Attractiveness, and Prosociality
The aim of this study was to examine the relations between popularity and different types of aggressive, destructive, and norm‐breaking behaviors in a large cross‐sectional sample of adolescents ( N =3,312, M age=13.60). We were interested in the extent to which the relations of these behaviors with popularity were moderated by positive features (i.e., athletic abilities, physical attractiveness, and prosociality). From a goal‐framing perspective…
Same-Gender and Cross-Gender Likeability: Associations With Popularity and Status Enhancement: The TRAILS study
This study examined the associations of popularity, substance use, athletic abilities, physical attractiveness, and physical and relational aggression with likeability by same-gender and cross-gender peers among early adolescents ( N = 3,312; M age = 13.60, with 92.7% of the participants in the 12-14 age range). Data collection consisted of peer nominations in 172 classrooms of 34 secondary schools. Taking a goal-framing perspective, it was argue…
Empirical test of bullies' status goals: Assessing direct goals, aggression, and prestige
The literature suggests that status goals are one of the driving motivations behind bullying behavior, yet this conjecture has rarely if ever been examined empirically. This study assessed status goals in three ways, using dyadic network analysis to analyze the relations and goals among 10–11 and 14–15 year olds in 22 school classes ( N boys=225; N girls=277). As a validation bullies were contrasted with victims. Bullies had direct status goals (…
Buffers and risks in temperament and family for early adolescent psychopathology: Generic, conditional, or domain-specific effects? The trails study
This study examined the possible risk-buffering and risk-enhancing role of family characteristics on the association between temperament and early adolescent externalizing and internalizing problems, adjusted for familial vulnerability for psychopathology and early childhood problem behavior. Furthermore, it explored whether these effects were specific or conditional for either internalizing or externalizing problems or more generic for psychopat…
The Complex Relation Between Bullying, Victimization, Acceptance, and Rejection: Giving Special Attention to Status, Affection, and Sex Differences
To understand the complex nature of bullies’ acceptance and rejection, this article considered goal-framing effects of status and affection as they relate to the gender of the bully (male vs. female bullies), the target (male vs. female victims), and the evaluator (acceptance and rejection from male vs. female classmates). The hypotheses were tested with data from a social network questionnaire conducted in 26 elementary school classes (N = 481 c…
Basking in Reflected Glory and Its Limits: Why Adolescents Hang Out With Popular Peers
The goal of this study was to examine whether popularity and likability were related to associating with popular peers in adolescence. Participants were 3,312 adolescents (M age=13.60 years) from 172 classrooms in 32 schools. Four types of peer affiliations of the participants with the popular peers in their classrooms were distinguished: “best friends,”“respected,”“wannabes,” and “unrelated.” Two types of benefits of affiliating with high-status…
Friday on My Mind: The Relation of Partying With Antisocial Behavior of Early Adolescents. The TRAILS Study
The relation between partying and antisocial behavior was investigated using a sample of Dutch early adolescents (T2: N=1,076; M age=13.52). Antisocial behavior was divided into rule-breaking and aggressive behavior. Using a goal-framing approach, it was argued that the relation of partying to antisocial behavior depends on the way the need to belong is realized. Girls, in early adolescence often physically more mature than boys, are likely to se…
Who Dates? The Effects of Temperament, Puberty, and Parenting on Early Adolescent Experience with Dating: The TRAILS Study
This article focuses on how temperament, pubertal maturation, and perception of parenting behaviors affect the propensity to date in early adolescence (mean age = 13.55). Hypotheses are tested with a representative sample of 2,230 Dutch adolescents, the TRacking Adolescents’ Individual Lives Survey (TRAILS). The results suggest that adolescents are more likely to have experience with dating when they score higher on the need for high-intensity pl…
Towards Standards for the Publication of Performance Indicators in the Public Sector: The Case of Schools
Since the 1990s, the media and public authorities in many developed countries have published data on the quality of public services such as schools, hospitals and police. In the education sector the publication of performance indicators and league tables generated considerable debate. In this article, the policy context of this development in the education sector is analysed in conjunction with the problems associated with the public reporting of…
Influence and Selection Processes in Weapon Carrying During Adolescence: The Roles of Status, Aggression, and Vulnerability
The role of peers in weapon carrying (guns, knives, and other weapons) inside and outside the school was examined in this study. Data stem from a longitudinal study of a high‐risk sample of male students (7th to 10th grade; N = 167) from predominantly Hispanic low‐socio‐economic‐status schools in the United States. Longitudinal social‐network models were used to test whether similarity in weapon carrying among friends results from peer influence …
Peer Group Status of Gender Dysphoric Children: A Sociometric Study
In this sociometric study, we aimed to investigate the social position of gender-referred children in a naturalistic environment. We used a peer nomination technique to examine their social position in the class and we specifically examined bullying and victimization of gender dysphoric children. A total of 28 children (14 boys and 14 girls), referred to a gender identity clinic, and their classmates (n = 495) were included (M age, 10.5 years). R…
Victims and their defenders: A dyadic approach
This study focused on the dyadic defending relationships of victimized children in grades 3, 4, and 5 (N = 7481 children from 356 school classes, mean ages 10—12 years). Most of the victims (72.3%) had at least one defender. Being defended was positively related to victims’ adjustment and social status. Analyses on victim—defender dyads showed that they were usually same-gender relationships. Victims usually liked their defenders and perceived th…
Early risk factors for being a bully, victim, or bully/victim in late elementary and early secondary education. The longitudinal TRAILS study
Preschool behavioral, emotional and motor problems, socioeconomic status, and family breakup are related to involvement in bullying at a later age. Prevention of bullying and its consequences can be enhanced by focusing on risk groups in early life
The Initiation of Dating in Adolescence: The Effect of Parental Divorce. The TRAILS Study
This study examined the effect of parental divorce on the time it took adolescents to initiate their first romantic relationships. Individual differences in temperament and pubertal development and the age of the adolescent at the time of divorce were also taken into account. Hypotheses were tested using event history analysis with a sample of 1,487 Dutch adolescents. Results indicated that divorce sped up the transition to first relationship onl…
“It must be me” or “It could be them?”: The impact of the social network position of bullies and victims on victims’ adjustment
Prevalence of bullying and victimization among children in early elementary school: Do family and school neighbourhood socioeconomic status matter
Bullying and victimization are already common problems in early elementary school. Children from socioeconomically disadvantaged families, rather than children visiting schools in disadvantaged neighbourhoods, have a particularly high risk of involvement in bullying. These findings suggest the need of timely bullying preventions and interventions that should have a special focus on children of families with a low socioeconomic background. Future …
Psychology (97 works) · Developmental psychology (85 works) · Social Psychology (79 works) · Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression (68 works) · Social Psychology (56 works) · Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development (48 works) · Peer group (28 works) · Poison control (28 works) · Youth Development and Social Support (27 works) · Medicine (26 works)