Socialization – Peers & Play I.Who is a peer, and what functions do peers serve? A.Same-age or equal status peers B.Mixed-age interactions C.Frequency of peer contacts D.How important are peer influences? II.The development of peer sociability A.Infant beginnings B.Sociability during preschool C.Social interactions in middle childhood and adolescence D.Parent effects on peer sociability 1.Promoting peer contacts 2.Monitoring and controlling play activities III.Peer acceptance and popularity A.Types of social acceptance B.Causes of peer acceptance 1.Parenting style 2.Physical correlates 3.Cognitive skills 4.Ordinal position effects 5.Facial attractiveness 6.Behavioral contributors IV.How do peers exert their influence? A.Peer reinforcement and modeling B.The normative function of peer groups C.Peer versus parental influences

Who Is A Peer; What Functions Do Peers Serve? Definition of a peer: Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary A “peer” is one who is of equal standing with another Peers as social equals, or individuals who are operating at the same level of behavioral complexity What functions do peers serve? Same age or equal status peers Mixed age interactions Importance of mixed age interactions Differences between mixed age and same age interactions Frequency of peer contacts How important are peer contacts? Harlow’s work with monkeys A human parallel – research by Anna Freud

The Development of Peer Sociability Infant beginnings: Are infants’ socially blind? Peer interactions in the 1 st year Infant smiling and babbling Peer interactions between 12 and 18 months Peer interactions between 18 and 24 months Coordinated interactions that are social Peer interactions after 24 months Peer sociability during the preschool years: The character of peer interactions Parten’s (1932) social play characterizations Non-social play – unoccupied onlooker, solitary play Parallel play – child plays near other children Cooperative play – children play with other children

Howes & Matheson (1992) Cognitive Complexity of Social Interactions Play TypeAgeDescription Parallel play6-12 mos.Perform similar activities without paying attention to each other. Parallel aware playBy 1 yearEngage in parallel play while occasionally looking at each other and monitoring activity. Simple pretend play1 – 1½ yrsEngage in similar activities while talking, sharing toys. Complementary and reciprocal play 1½ - 2 yrsDisplay action-based role reversals in social games such as peek-a-boo. Cooperative social pretend play 2½ - 3 yrsPlay contemporary nonliteral “pretend” roles (e.g., mommy and baby), without any planning or discussion about meaning of the roles or forms they take Complex social pretend play 3½ - 4 yrsActively plan pretend play. Explicitly assign roles to players, propose a script, etc

Cooperation and Competition in Children’s Play Child’s Rules CooperativeCompetitive Partner’s Rules Competitive Cooperative Subjects: Grade 1 and 3 children

Parental Effects on Peer Sociability Promoting peer contacts: Parental influence on the amount of peer contacts Choice of residence Monitoring and controlling peer contacts: Parents arranging play dates How closely should parents monitor or intrude on children’s interactions?

Peer Acceptance Categories of peer acceptance: Popular: Liked by many, disliked by few Rejected: Disliked by many, liked by few Neglected: Few nominations of like or dislike; ignored by peers Controversial: Liked by many, disliked by many Average status children: Liked or disliked by moderate number of peers Categories of rejected children: Aggressive: Highly inappropriately aggressive Non-aggressive: Anxious, display few social skills, actively avoid peer contacts

How Do Peers Exert Their Influence? Peer reinforcement and modeling: Peers as reinforcers Gender appropriateness of behavior Modelling influences Moral judgments, achievement behaviors, sex-typed attitudes Objects of social comparison The peer group as the most logical place for social comparisons Controversial: Liked by many, disliked by many The normative function of peer groups: Peer conformity

Peers and Conformity Adapted from Berndt (1979)

How Do Peers Exert Their Influence? Peer reinforcement and modeling: Peers as reinforcers Gender appropriateness of behavior Modelling influences Moral judgments, achievement behaviors, sex-typed attitudes Objects of social comparison The peer group as the most logical place for social comparisons Controversial: Liked by many, disliked by many The normative function of peer groups: Peer conformity Peer versus adult influences: The reality of “cross-pressures” Peer versus adult domains of influence