2. 10 Peers "One loyal friend is worth ten thousand relatives." -- Euripides (408 B.C.)

3. Increase in time with peers  Increase in nomination of peers as significant others  Increase in functioning without adult supervision Increase in contact with opposite-sex peers  Reverses the childhood sex cleavage Emergence of large groups – “crowds”  Crowds develop their own miniculture  Adolescents are naturally drawn to become more intimate and involved with people who are like them internally and externally (appearance) Changes in peer groups during adolescence

4. Peer Group Functions Illustration copyright © 2002 www.arttoday.com. Used with permission. Developmental Changes in Peer Time Are Peers Necessary For Development? Positive & Negative Peer Relations

5. Role of peer groups In modern cultures, society changes from generation to generation  children and adolescents need to teach each other some things that adults cannot teach them  children need to teach adults many things, as society changes even more rapidly

6. Friendship Companionship Physical support Stimulation Ego support Social Comparison Intimacy/affection The Importance of Friendships Fig. 10.3

7. Friendship Sullivan’s Ideas  Increase in importance of friendship in adolescence Intimacy and Similarity  Intimacy – self-disclosure  Similarity – age, sex, ethnicity Mixed-Aged Friendships

8. PopularRejected ControversialNeglected Frequently nominated as best friend Infrequently nominated as best friend Rarely disliked by peers Actively disliked by peers Peer Statuses

9. POPULARITY AND REJECTION IN ADOLESCENT PEER GROUPS Popular adolescents are more likely to have close and intimate friendships There are three types of unpopular, or disliked, adolescents:  Aggressive  fights with other students  Withdrawn=exceedingly shy, timid, and inhibited  Aggressive-Withdrawn=combination

10. PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT Unpopular youngsters may lack the social skills and social understanding necessary to be popular with peers Social competence training programs can teach social skills Experience in the peer group  expression of autonomy

11. Social Cognition and Emotion Social Cognition  Adolescents have more social knowledge than children  Difficulty in peers relations Lack social cognitive skills Emotion  Emotional regulation

12. Social Cognition and Emotion Improving Social Skills  Conglomerate Strategies Modeling Discussion Reasoning Reinforcement

13. Family-Peer Linkages Parents can model or coach their adolescents in ways of relating to peers Secure attachment to parents relates to positive peer relations

14. THE NATURE OF ADOLESCENT PEER GROUPS Cliques and Crowds  Adolescence marks the emergence of large collectives of peers, or “crowds.”  Cliques are small groups defined by common activities or simply by friendship

15. THE NATURE OF ADOLESCENT PEER GROUPS Changes in Clique and Crowd Structure over Time  Over the course of adolescence, the crowd structure becomes more differentiated, more permeable, and less hierarchical, allowing adolescents more freedom to change crowds and enhance their status

16. ADOLESCENTS AND THEIR CROWDS The Social Map of Adolescence  Involvement in institutions controlled by adults, such as school and extracurricular activities  Involvement in informal, peer culture crowds

17. ADOLESCENTS AND THEIR CROWDS Crowds as Reference Groups  Crowds contribute to the definition of norms and standards for such things as clothing, leisure, and tastes in music

18. ADOLESCENTS AND THEIR CLIQUES Similarity among Clique Members  Adolescents’ cliques typically are composed of people of the same age, same race, same socioeconomic background, and—at least during early and middle adolescence—of the same sex

19. ADOLESCENTS AND THEIR CLIQUES Common Interests among Friends Similarity Between Friends: Selection or Socialization?  With regard to antisocial activities, such as delinquency or drug use, it appears as if “birds of a feather flock together”

20. Cliques and crowds · · Usually same sex and age · Promotes intimacy Small groups of 2-12 peers · · One study showed fewer than half of the students were in a clique · Girls more likely than boys; boys more likely to be isolates (few intimate friendships) · Position in social network was fairly stable over time

21. Adolescent Groups Cliques and Crowds  Cliques: Small groups ranging from 2 to 12 individuals, averaging about 5 to 6  Crowds: A larger group structure than cliques. Adolescents are usually members of a crowd based on reputation

22. A model for mapping the social world of adolescent peer groups

23. PSYCHOSOCIAL DEVELOPMENT Girls also act aggressively toward peers, but usually socially, not physically

24. Gender Boys are more likely than girls to:  Associate in larger clusters  Engage in competition, conflict, ego displays, risk taking, dominance seeking Girls are more likely than boys to:  Engage in collaborative discourse

25. Culture Some countries restrict adolescents’ access to peers  Engage in more peer interaction during school In some countries peers play larger role

26. Dating and Romantic Relationships Illustration copyright © 2002 www.arttoday.com. Used with permission. Functions of Dating  Recreation  Status  Socialization

27. Dating and Romantic Relationships Types of Dating  Heterosexual Romantic Relationships  Romantic Relationships in Sexual Minority Youth Myths Sexual minority youth struggle All sexual minority youth have same-sex attractions Sexual minority youth always fall in love with same sex

28. Love and Its Construction Romantic Love:  Strong sexual and infatuation components  Often predominates in the early part of a love relationship

29. Love and Its Construction Affectionate Love:  This occurs when individuals desire to have another person near and have a deep, caring affection for that person

30. Gender and Culture Male and Female Dating Scripts Dating scripts: The cognitive models that adolescents and adults use to guide and evaluate dating interactions

31. Ethnicity and Culture Sociocultural context  Influences dating patterns Religious beliefs and values

32. Age segregation Adolescents in the U.S. today are more isolated from adults and children outside their age group than ever before  age grouping in schools began in the 1930’s  Child labor laws restricted adolescents’ participation in the world of work, further isolating them from adult  Rise in maternal employment also isolated teens from adults

33. Gender/race differences · In general, adolescents tend to have far less contact with peers of other races than of their own race · This “race cleavage” tends to be stronger for females than males · Some argue that the higher concern for opposite-sex attention among girls facilitates a more competitive attitude of girls toward each other · White females are perhaps also more connected to the network of information about teachers and classes than African-American girls · Girls are also more likely to spend time in small groups than boys, which facilitates more isolation from other groups