Popularity, social preference, and social behaviors: the moderation of social status goals

Abstract

This study investigated the associations between attained status and adolescents’ social behaviors, as well as the moderating effects of social status goals, culture, and gender. Participants were 1,267 adolescents (Mage = 13.36; 49% girls overall) from China (n = 667) and the United Sates (n = 600). Social status goals, relational and overt aggression, and prosocial behaviors were self-reported, whereas popularity and social preference were peer reported. The findings suggest that the relationships between popularity and relational aggression and overt aggression were stronger when adolescents endorsed high popularity goals, whereas this relationship was weaker when these adolescents endorsed high social preference goals. For prosocial behaviors, these associations were stronger when adolescents endorsed high social preference goals, but lower when they endorsed high popularity goals. The patterns for social preference were stronger for Chinese adolescents, while the relationships for popularity were stronger for American adolescents. No moderation effects were found for gender. These findings indicate the need to consider the cultural context when examining adolescents’ social status and the associated social behaviors.