Abstract
As competition over peer status becomes intense during adolescence, some adolescents develop insecure feelings regarding their social standing among their peers (i.e., social status insecurity). These adolescents sometimes use aggression to defend or promote their status. The aim of this study was to examine the relationships among social status insecurity, callous-unemotional (CU) traits, and popularity-motivated aggression and prosocial behaviors among adolescents, while controlling for gender. Another purpose was to examine the potential moderating role of CU traits in these relationships. Participants were 1,047 (49.2% girls; Mage = 12.44 years; age range from 11 to 14 years) in the 7th or 8th grades from a large Midwestern city. They completed questionnaires on social status insecurity, CU traits, and popularity-motivated relational aggression, physical aggression, cyberaggression, and prosocial behaviors. A structural regression model was conducted, with gender as a covariate. The model had adequate fit. Social status insecurity was associated positively with callousness, unemotional, and popularity-motivated aggression and related negatively to popularity-motivated prosocial behaviors. High social status insecurity was related to greater popularity-motivated aggression when adolescents had high callousness traits. The findings have implications for understanding the individual characteristics associated with social status insecurity.
Highlights
As competition over peer status becomes intense during adolescence, some adolescents develop insecure feelings regarding their social standing among their peers
The correlations indicated that social status insecurity was related positively to callousness, unemotional, and popularity-motivated relational aggression, physical aggression, and cyberaggression
Uncaring was unrelated to popularity motivated relational aggression, physical aggression, cyberaggression, and prosocial behaviors
Summary
As competition over peer status becomes intense during adolescence, some adolescents develop insecure feelings regarding their social standing among their peers (i.e., social status insecurity). Supporting this proposal, Wright (2014) found that popularity was positively associated with cyberaggression (i.e., intentionally harassing, embarrassing, outing, excluding, and intimidating others through ICTs) It is currently unknown whether adolescents with high social status insecurity and callous-unemotional (CU) traits would use aggressive and prosocial behaviors in the online and offline contexts to gain popularity. The focus of the present research was to examine the relationships among, CU traits, social status insecurity, and popularity-motivated aggression and prosocial behaviors among adolescents, while controlling for gender. Another aim of this research was to examine the potential moderating effect of CU traits in these relationships. Gaining popularity or a higher social standing among one’s peers using aggressive behaviors in the offline and cyber contexts may present a motivating reward for adolescents with CU traits
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
