Abstract
Prior research indicates that high negative emotionality in combination with low peer status is conducive of clinically identified problems in childhood. This three-wave longitudinal study examined how negative emotionality and peer status are linked over time in middle and late childhood. Participants were recruited from second grade ( n = 90, mean age = 8.85) and fourth grade ( n = 119, mean age = 10.81) and were followed across a period of 2 years. Cross-lagged structural models examining concurrent and longitudinal associations between teacher-reported negative emotionality and peer ratings of likability were analyzed separately for externalizing emotion (anger) and internalizing emotion (sadness and fear). Both analyses provided support for a conceptual model in which high negative emotionality lowers peer status, and low peer status, in turn, through a feedback loop, increases negative emotionality over time. Bidirectional influences are interpreted as reflecting a transactional process involving the effects of negative emotionality on social behavior. The findings highlight the need for active efforts to help children with high negative emotionality gain acceptance from classmates.
Highlights
Prior research indicates that high negative emotionality in combination with low peer status is conducive of clinically identified problems in childhood
The current study examines whether children who frequently express strong negative emotions at elementary school may be caught in this type of vicious circle in which negative emotionality and peer status influence one another over time
Test of the cross-lagged structural model of peer status and externalizing emotion indicated an acceptable fit to the data, χ2 (61) = 116.18, p < .001; Tucker–Lewis index (TLI) = .95; comparative fit index (CFI) = .97; root mean square error of approximation (RMSEA) = .07, 95% CI (.05–.08)
Summary
Participants were recruited by contacting the school authority in three municipalities in southern Sweden. Each authority provided contact information to one public school interested in participating. In Sweden, children start Grade 1 of elementary school the year they turn 7, and leave after completing Grade 9. Information on socioeconomic status for the individual children was not collected. The vast majority of elementary school-aged children in Sweden attend their nearest public school. Our sample is likely to reflect the socioeconomic status of the local communities in which the schools are situated (average educational level for adults 25–54 years of age: 13% less than high school, 48% high school, and 39% more than high school) (Statistiska centralbyrån [SCB], n.d.)
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