Boys with peer adjustment problems: Social cognitive processes.

30 4th-grade and 30 6th-grade males with positive (P) or negative (N) peer status were asked to generate alternative solutions to hypothetical problems, evaluate possible solutions, describe self-statements, and rate the likelihood of possible self-statements to investigate the hypothesis that maladjusted Ss (N peer status) would lack specific social cognitive skills. Hypothetical problems were presented in interviews that emphasized situations involving acts of aggression. Interviews were conducted in 2 parts, involving knowledge of interpersonal problem-solving strategies and attributional style assessment. Results indicate that N Ss generated fewer alternative solutions, proposed fewer assertive and mature solutions, generated more intense aggressive solutions, showed less adaptive planning, and evaluated physically aggressive responses more positively and positive responses more negatively than did P Ss. Data support the notion that boys with social adjustment problems are deficient in the cognitive problem-solving skill of generating multiple alternative solutions. Findings suggest that differences in knowledge and/or attitudes concerning normative social behavior may contribute to the more negative behavior patterns observed in socially maladjusted boys. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Social-cognitive and behavioral characteristics of peer-rejected boys.

Identified 13 rejected and 13 popular 3rd- and 4th-grade boys using sociometric nomination measures. Playground observations and interview assessments of social problem solving were administered during the winter and spring. Rejected Ss both exhibited and received more aversive behavior than popular Ss. Although no status differences in the overall rate of interaction were found, rejected Ss exhibited more onlooker behavior and solitary play than the popular ones. No differences in the frequency of alternative solutions to hypothetical social problems were found between status groups. The solutions of rejected Ss were, however, less effective and more aggressive than those of populars. Chosen solutions of rejected Ss were also more likely to be ineffective and aggressive than those of populars. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Deviant of diverse peer groups? The peer affiliations of aggressive elementary students.

This study examined peer affiliations of aggressive children in a sample of 948 students (496 girls, 452 boys) from 59 elementary classrooms (4th-6th grades). Groups were identified as zero aggressive, nonaggressive, aggressive, and mixed. The deviant peer group hypothesis was partially supported. Two thirds of aggressive boys and one half of aggressive girls were members of nonaggressive or mixed peer groups. Unpopular aggressive boys were most likely to be members of nonaggressive groups, whereas popular aggressive boys were most likely to be in aggressive and mixed groups. Aggressive and nonaggressive associates tended to he similar on key social characteristics (i.e., popularity, athleticism, leadership). (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Automatic versus reflective social problem solving in relation to children's sociometric status.

Children's automatic and reflective social problem-solving skills were compared by requiring them to generate solutions to hypothetical social problems immediately after hearing them or after being required to wait 20 sec before answering. When responding immediately, a condition designed to evoke Ss' automatic response tendencies, both aggressive and nonaggressive, rejected boys generated fewer verbal assertion responses and more conflict-escalating responses than did nonrejected boys. When required to delay before responding, a condition that encouraged reflective reasoning, only the responses of aggressive rejected boys differed from those of nonrejected boys. Similar status-related differences in the solutions proposed by female Ss were not found. The implications of these findings for aggressive and rejected children's social problem-solving deficiencies are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Hypothesis generation and confidence in judgment.

Ss asked to generate their own hypotheses expressed less confidence that they were true than did other Ss who were presented with the same hypotheses for evaluation. This finding holds across domains varying from prediction and social inference to general knowledge questions. Furthermore, Ss who generated their own hypotheses appeared to be more sensitive to their accuracy than were Ss who evaluated the hypotheses. The results are interpreted as evidence that the hypothesis generation task leads Ss to consider more alternative hypotheses than Ss who are asked to evaluate a prespecified hypothesis. This interpretation is supported by experiments demonstrating that the difference between generation and evaluation disappears if a closed set of alternatives is specified or if a delay is inserted between hypothesis generation and confidence assessment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Evaluation of social problem solving in schizophrenia.

Examined social problem solving in schizophrenia. 27 schizophrenic patients in an acute hospital, 19 patients with bipolar disease, and 17 demographically matched nonpatient controls were tested on an empirically developed problem-solving battery that assessed the ability to generate solutions to problems, the ability to evaluate the effectiveness of solutions, and the ability to implement solutions in a role-playing format. Schizophrenic Ss were impaired on all 3 problem-solving domains compared with the nonpatient controls, but bipolar Ss were equally impaired. Several alternative explanations for these findings were considered. The most compelling hypothesis is that the deficits resulted from different factors: cognitive impairment for schizophrenic Ss and acute illness for bipolar Ss. However, longitudinal studies are required to determine whether problem-solving deficits in schizophrenic patients persist during periods of remission. Implications for rehabilitation strategies are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stability and change in aggression and withdrawal in middle childhood and early adolescence.

Examined stability and change in aggression and withdrawal in the context of both normal and deviant behavioral development. The design included 3 age cohorts with a total of 653 Ss separated in age by 3 yrs. Aggression and withdrawal were measured using the Peer Evaluation Inventory initially when the Ss were in Grades 1, 4, and 7 and a 2nd time when the Ss were in Grades 4, 7, and 10, respectively. Members of 4 classification groups were included in the sample: 183 Ss in an aggressive group, 219 Ss in a withdrawn group, 251 Ss in an aggressive-withdrawn group, and a nondeviant control group consisting of 1,103 Ss. The stability of aggression was found to be moderately high, regardless of sex of S or grade at time of initial assessment. Moderate stability was found for withdrawal for both boys and girls when initial assessments were conducted at Grades 4 and 7. The withdrawn Ss became more withdrawn over the 3-yr period. It is concluded that, for many children, the problems of aggression and withdrawal do not appear to be transitory. (34 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Development of self-verbalized control of resistance to deviation.

The relative effectiveness of 2 types of self-instruction in controlling deviant behavior was assessed developmentally. 28 1st- and 20 2nd-grade boys were trained to say 1, or both, of 2 behavior instructions to themselves during a resistance-to-deviation test period. These instructions included a prohibitive rule that focused on inhibition of deviant behavior and/or a facilitative redirective instruction that focused attention and behavior toward a permissible alternative activity. Although training with the self-verbalized prohibitive rule resulted in less deviant behavior for both 1st- and 2nd-grade Ss, similar training with the self-verbalized redirective instruction resulted in reduced deviant behavior only among the 2nd graders. In direct contrast, for the 1st graders, training with the redirective self-verbalization resulted in increased levels of deviant behavior. (6 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Deviance and the control of one's fate.

Conducted 2 experiments in which 42 and 33 undergraduates in 5-person groups were assigned at random to 1 of 3 experimental conditions: (a) 1/3 of the Ss were made to feel deviant from most other people and were led to believe that the rest of the group consisted of 3 nondeviants and another deviant very like themselves (similar deviant condition); (b) 1/3 of the Ss were made to feel deviant and led to believe that the rest of the group consisted of 3 nondeviants and a deviant who was very different from themselves (different deviants); and (c) 1/3 of the Ss were made to feel nondeviant and were led to believe that the rest of the group consisted of 3 other nondeviants and 1 deviant (nondeviant condition). All Ss were then asked to indicate their choice of person to control the amount of shock and reward they would be getting. In both experiments, similar deviants tended to choose deviants more than did Ss in either of the other 2 groups. (French summary) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A multimethod comparison of popular and unpopular children.

Differences between 101 popular and unpopular 3rd and 4th graders were assessed by teacher reports, classroom observations, the Peabody Individual Achievement Test, the Children's Depression Inventory, ratings on role-play situations, interviews that elicited information on Ss' knowledge of social skills, and responses to hypothetical situations. Unpopular Ss were perceived as being more depressed and deviant by teachers than were popular Ss. Classroom observations indicated that unpopular Ss spent significantly less time on-task than popular Ss and engaged in significantly more negative interactions. There was a trend for popular Ss to perform at a higher academic level than unpopular Ss, and the latter Ss were more depressed than Ss in the former group. (9 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Culture and the development of everyday social explanation.

Predicted that a developmental test would show (1) that individuals of all ages tested in the Indian and American cultures would display the cognitive skills in classification required to generate dispositional attributions and (2) that references to general dispositions would not vary as a function of attributors' exposure to objective conditions identified by theorists as making taxonomic categorization of behavior adaptive. In Study 1, test data were obtained from 40 middle-class Hindu adults and 90 8-, 11-, and 15-yr-old Hindu children and from 30 middle-class American adults and 90 8-, 11-, and 15-yr-old American children. Ss were asked to narrate 2 prosocial behaviors and 2 deviant behaviors and to explain why the behaviors were undertaken. Results show that at older ages, Americans made greater reference to general dispositions and less reference to contextual factors in explanation. In Study 2, 20 American university students were tested on deviant behavior to determine if differences were cross-cultural or informational. Results show that there were cross-cultural and developmental differences related to contrasting cultural conceptions of Ss acquired over development in the 2 cultures rather than from cognitive, experiential, and informational differences between attributors. (86 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

How children learn to listen: The effects of modeling feedback styles on children's performance in referential communication.

48 kindergartners and 48 2nd graders participated as listeners in a referential communication task with an adult speaker. Ss were presented with sets of 4 pictures and asked to choose the referent on the basis of a speaker's message. The messages were either adequate or ambiguous, describing 2 of the 4 possible referents. Ss were instructed to ask questions if they needed more information. Prior to these trials, Ss were exposed to 1 of 3 modeling conditions in which they viewed an adult listener responding to ambiguous messages by asking either general questions, specific questions, or specific questions accompanied by an explanation of the underlying strategy. A 4th group received no modeling. Although each of the modeling groups was successful in increasing the frequency of the modeled question, older Ss benefited more from modeling than younger children. Age differences suggested that the effectiveness of modeling interacted with children's existing cognitive abilities. Auxiliary evidence pointed to the role of information processing in children's abilities to deal with ambiguous communications as listeners. (16 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

The development of schemes for recognizing additive and alternative effects in a "natural experiment" context.

20 Ss at each of 4 age levels (4th, 6th, and 8th grade and college) were presented a "natural experiment" problem situation in which they were asked to interpret the more complex situations in which (a) either of 2 alternative variables is sufficient to produce an outcome, or (b) 2 variables are additive in their effect on an outcome. Not until adolescence could Ss isolate alternative or additive causes in a multivariable situation, though it is speculated they may comprehend the concept of alternative causes well before this age. Only 65% of college Ss exhibited correct reasoning in one or both situations. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Personality characteristics of parents of neurotic, aggressive, and normal preadolescent boys.

Compared MMPI's of parents of neurotic, aggressive, and normal 9-11 yr. old boys using 2 of Achenbach's factors for classification of child psychiatric patients. 23 couples, parents of aggressive boys, were more deviant than 29 couples, parents of neurotic boys, Experimental parents were more deviant than 50 control couples. Fathers of aggressive boys were higher on Pd than either fathers of neurotic or control boys. Fathers of neurotic boys were higher on K. Mothers of aggressive boys had more low point Mf. More neurotic boys were oldest and more aggressive boys middle children. (16 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Moral norms and social conventions: A cross-cultural comparison.

60 boys and 60 girls in the 1st and 4th grades in Israel were interviewed to examine the distinction between moral and conventional norms. Ss were equally divided between 3 groups: secular urban Jews, secular kibbutz Jews, and traditional Arab villagers. Ss were presented with 8 behaviors, all breaches of moral or conventional norms. Two of them dealt with norms strongly observed by the traditional but not by the other groups and 2 with norms central to the kibbutz. Ss were asked the extent to which the behavior was bad (or good) in a country where (a) it was prohibited and (b) it was permitted. They were also asked whether it should be forbidden by law, and why. City and kibbutz Ss did not differ in their judgments, even in regard to behaviors emphasized in the kibbutz. Compared with these groups, the traditional group judged all behaviors as bad even when permitted; they thought all should be prohibited by law and their justifications tended to be in normative terms. Results are interpreted in terms of 2 distinct orientations to social norms: one where the criteria for social judgment of behaviors and norms are consequences to others and law, and the other where social norms are considered to have absolute validity and constitute the dominant criterion for moral judgment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Situational approach to the assessment of social competence in children.

Generated and evaluated a taxonomy of the situations and tasks most likely to lead deviant children to experience social difficulties. In Study 1, elementary school teachers and clinicians were asked to notice such situations as they occurred. The outcome was a 44-item taxonomy of problematic social situations for children. This survey was administered to teachers of 45 socially rejected children (79% male) from Grades 3–5 and 39 adaptive children of the opposite sociometric criteria who were matched by sex and age to the rejected Ss. The survey was found to have high internal consistency and high test–retest reliability. Six situation types emerged as factors in analyses: Peer Group Entry, Response to Peer Provocations, Response to Failure, Response to Success, Social Expectations, and Teacher Expectations. Teachers rated the rejected group as having more problems than the adaptive group in each situation, but particularly in Response to Peer Provocations and Teacher Expectations. In Study 2, 15 items within the 6 factors were presented in a hypothetical format to 39 clinic-referred rejected aggressive children (77% males) from Grades 3–5 and 34 adaptive children selected by opposite criteria and matched by sex and age to the rejected aggressive Ss, who were asked to role play their responses. The items, in particular the provocation items, again differentiated the 2 groups. Sex and age differences were also found. The usefulness of this taxonomy in a 3-step model of clinical assessment is proposed. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Motives for helping behavior: Kibbutz and city children in kindergarten and school.

Studied the motives for helping expressed by 80 children 4–5? and 7–8? yrs of age. Half of each age group were from a kibbutz and half from a city. Half of each group were boys, half girls. Ss were presented with 3 pictures depicting 3 situations in which one child had an opportunity to help. They were asked whether the child in the picture would help and if so, what the child's motive would be for such an action. They were also asked questions regarding motives for helping behavior in general. Three hypotheses were stated: (1) Older Ss would express higher-level motives for helping than younger Ss. (2) Kibbutz Ss would express higher-level motives than city Ss. (3) Girls would express higher-level motives than boys. Only the 1st hypothesis was confirmed. No differences were found between kibbutz and city Ss or between boys and girls. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Heterogeneity of popular boys: Antisocial and prosocial configurations.

This study examined subtypes of popular 4th–6th grade boys (N?=?452). Popular-prosocial (model) and popular-antisocial (tough) configurations were identified by means of teacher ratings and compared with peer and self-assessments and social centrality measures. Peers perceived model boys as cool, athletic, leaders, cooperative, studious, not shy, and nonaggressive. Peers perceived tough boys as cool, athletic, and antisocial. Model boys saw themselves as nonaggressive and academically competent. Tough boys saw themselves as popular, aggressive, and physically competent. Tough boys were disproportionately African American, particularly when African Americans were a minority in their classrooms. Model and tough boys were overrepresented at nuclear social centrality levels. These findings suggest that highly aggressive boys can be among the most popular and socially connected children in elementary classrooms. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Responses to "neutral" pronoun presentations and the development of sex-biased responding.

Investigated whether 36 kindergarten and 36 1st-grade children, like college students, would give male-biased responses to a "he" presentation and examined how Ss would respond to the use of "they" and "he or she" pronoun presentations. The effects of pronoun use on memory were also investigated, as were possible sex differences in responding. Each S was assigned to 1 of 3 pronoun presentation groups, each of which contained an equal number of girls and boys. Ss in the different groups listened to the exact same story except that Group I Ss heard the pronoun "they" used throughout the story, Group 2 Ss heard "she" or "he" used throughout the story, and Group 3 Ss heard the pronoun "he" throughout the story. Ss were then asked to retell the story and were shown pictures of a boy and a girl and asked to indicate which one the story was about. Results support the pronomial dominance theory of pronoun functioning for young children. Results also support the hypothesis that boys initially use a self-imaging response to neutral presentations. The time of transition away from this response was identified as the 1st-grade level. There was no indication that kindergarten or 1st-grade girls use the self-imagining approach. The "they" presentation appeared to be the most neutral. (18 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Formal operational reasoning and the primacy effect in impression formation.

Investigated the relationship between level of cognitive development and the primacy effect in impression formation. 48 concrete operational and formal operational 8th graders were presented with blocks of information (photographs) about a target individual and were asked to write an impression. When the information was presented in 2 internally consistent but mutually contradictory blocks, impressions produced by concrete operational Ss contained a significantly greater proportion of evaluative statements in the same evaluative direction as the 1st block of information presented (the primacy effect) than did impressions produced by formal operational Ss. Results support the argument that the processing and organizing abilities measured in "objective" cognitive tasks are also used in social cognition. (10 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)