This article presents a short-term longitudinal study examining bidirectional associations between academic achievement and positive peer regard among Asian American and Latinx adolescents. ...Specifically, our investigation distinguished between positive peer regard within and across different ethnic groups in a diverse school setting. Three hundred and thirty-five middle school students (52.8% girls; 65% Asian American, 35% Latinx; assessment at the first time point Mage = 12.27 years, SD = 0.71) were followed across two consecutive school years. Participants completed a peer-nomination inventory assessing multiple dimensions of positive peer regard (i.e., reciprocal friendship, social acceptance, and respect), and grades were obtained from school records. Academic achievement was predictive of prospective positive peer regard received from same-ethnic peers only for Asian American adolescents. In contrast, academic achievement predicted prospective positive peer regard received from cross-ethnic peers only for Latinx adolescents. These results suggest that academic achievement was linked to social gains with peers from different ethnic backgrounds for Asian American and Latinx students. The findings underscore the importance of disentangling the sources of positive peer regard in multiethnic school environments.
Public Significance StatementThe present investigation provides evidence that academic achievement is a predictor of same-ethnic positive peer regard for Asian American adolescents and cross-ethnic positive peer regard for Latinx adolescents. It also highlights the critical role that academic success plays in fostering positive peer relationships across different ethnic groups in a diverse school setting.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, undergraduates found themselves in an unprecedented social situation. Campuses across North America closed, as universities moved to remote learning. When in-person ...classes resumed, students had to negotiate the return to on-campus life. The current investigation examines predictive associations between pandemic-related stressors and distress during this transition, focusing on social media activity as a potential moderator. A longitudinal sample of 349 students at an urban university (116 men, 222 women, 11 nonbinary; Mage = 20.37) completed consecutive waves of measures (fall 2021 to spring 2022). A cross-sectional replication was recruited in spring 2022 (163 men, 229 women, 34 nonbinary). In both samples, we assessed social media activity using a newly developed measure. We also assessed internalizing symptoms, loneliness, and exposure to pandemic stressors. COVID-19 stress predicted increases in internalizing symptoms, but the effect held only for students who acknowledged high levels of active online communication.
•COVID stress was associated with internalizing symptoms for undergraduates returning to campus after remote instruction.•Active and passive subtypes of social media use were demonstrated in two independent samples.•Online-only communication and active communication moderated associations between COVID stress and internalizing symptoms.•Links between COVID stress and internalizing held only at high levels of online-only communication or active communication.
This paper examines the moderating role of problem-talk partnerships with peers who are rejected, victimized, or unpopular on links between self-perceived victimization by peers and depressive ...symptoms. Problem-talk partnerships are friendships that involve frequent discussion of problems and personal struggles. 267 adolescents (152 girls; mean age of 14.4 years) participated in a short-term prospective study with identical measures administered in two annual waves. The adolescents completed a battery of self-report questionnaires assessing peer victimization and depression. They also completed a peer nomination inventory and identified friends with whom they frequently discuss problems. High levels of peer nominated victimization, social rejection, and unpopularity among problem-talk partners were linked to elevated associations between self-reported victimization and depressive symptoms. The effects for unpopularity levels among problem-talk partners were moderated by gender. Compared to boys, girls' adjustment was more strongly influenced by unpopularity among problem-talk partners. Conversely, friendships with peers who were not problem-talk partners did not have a consistent moderating role. The full pattern of findings highlights the need to consider the social adjustment of dyadic partners when examining the psychosocial impact of perceived victimization.
