Friendship Development Research Articles

Online Aristotelian Character Friendship as an Augmented Form of Penpalship

This paper adds ammunition to recent arguments for the possibility of online character friendships in the Aristotelian sense. It does so by exploring sustained and deep email correspondence or epalship as a potential venue for the creation, development and maintenance of character friendships, and by drawing an analogy with a historically famous example of penpalship: that forged between Voltaire and Catherine the Great. It is argued that epalships allow for various technological extensions in the cyberworld of today that were not available to Voltaire and Catherine; and that augmented with those extensions, there is even more reason for seeing epalships as potentially making the grade as true character friendships than traditional penpalships. However, despite being potentially categorisable as character friendships, mature epalships are vulnerable to the same problems and pitfalls as other examples of character friendships, and perhaps even more so: pitfalls that were mostly overlooked by Aristotle himself.

Creative, Thus Connected: The Power of Sociometric Creativity on Friendship Formation in Gifted Adolescents-A Longitudinal Network Analysis of Gifted Students.

The current study's purpose is to explore the influence of peer-perceived creativity (sociometric creativity) on the short-term development of friendships during a summer program for high ability students. Specifically, the two main objectives of our study are: (1) How did students' friendships network and sociometric creativity network evolve in the summer program? (2) How did sociometric creativity influence the friendship formation? The longitudinal study was conducted at the beginning, middle and the end of a 3-week long program for gifted students in Ireland. The sample consisted of Irish gifted students (N = 702, aged 13-18 years, 52% female, over thirty-one classes). Overall, our longitudinal multilevel and multigroup social network analysis shows that gifted adolescents formed reciprocated friendship ties and cohesive peer group structures in the investigated period; similar age and the same gender predicted friendship formation. Regarding the sociometric creativity, they tended to nominate a similar age and same gender student as very creative. Moreover, the sociometric creativity positively influenced adolescents' friendship networks on a dyadic level, indicating that adolescents select friends based on their perception of the other student's creativity. Further results, explanations, and implications are discussed.

A Longitudinal Study of the Relation between Support Reciprocity and Mental Health: Focusing on the Early Stage of Friendship Development among College Students

A Longitudinal Study of the Relation between Support Reciprocity and Mental Health: Focusing on the Early Stage of Friendship Development among College Students

Self-presentation on Instagram and friendship development among young adults: A moderated mediation model of media richness, perceived functionality, and openness

The present study examined the underlying mechanism of self-presentation on emerging social networking sites (SNSs) where features facilitating simulation of real-life communication are plenty. Although previous scholars have examined self-presentation on social media, very few have investigated the combined influences of extrinsic media features and intrinsic personality trait in orchestrating self-presentation on Instagram, a platform that is highly popular among young adults. Specifically, based on the concepts from media richness theory and survey data collected from 671 young adults, our study showed that perceived media richness of Instagram was positively associated with the young adults’ self-presentation on the platform, which, in turn, enhanced their friendship development. Mediation analyses demonstrated that perceived functionality mediated the association between perceived media richness and self-presentation on Instagram. Additionally, tests of moderated mediation indicated that the indirect effect was stronger for young adults who were low on openness. Results underscore the importance of identifying the underlying processes that moderate the mediation between perceived media richness and self-presentation.

A qualitative study of how exclusion processes shape friendship development among Turkish-Belgian university students

Our knowledge of how ethnic minority students explain and make sense of their friendship preferences in a university setting remains limited, despite the significance of friendships in the adaptation of students to higher education. Drawing on findings from qualitative interviews, this article explores the friendship preferences of 20 Turkish-Belgian university students in the northern part of Belgium. An inductive thematic analysis is conducted to analyse the interviews through constant comparison. The findings demonstrate that students who preferred same-ethnic friendships valued the role of familiarity and a shared understanding. Students with predominantly interethnic friends referred to having interests and attitudes similar to those of their friends. While students’ friendship preferences evolved over time throughout their educational career, the university context allowed students to strengthen or change their preferences for certain groups of friends with particular traits and/or lifestyles and hence facilitated their preferences for homophilous friendships. These friendship preferences and searches were also shaped by inclusion/exclusion processes. Nearly all participants felt excluded or othered by peers of Belgian origin during everyday interactions on campus. However, they interpreted these exclusion experiences differently based on their peer groups and used distinct coping mechanisms, resulting in distinct patterns of friendship preferences.

스포츠 동아리 참여동기가 스포츠 몰입에 미치는 영향 : 조직 동일시 매개효과 검증

Purpose: This study is aimed to verify the effect of participation motivation on sport commitment and organization Identification, and the mediating effect of club identification.BR Method: Total 290 subjects participated in the questionnaire and 276 number of copies were collected for final analysis to draw a result. Analyses were performed using statistical softwares(SPSS, AMOS). Frequency analysis, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, reliability analysis, correlation coefficients, multiple regressions, mediation analysis and hierarchical regressions were conducted.BR Results: First, the intrinsic and extrinsic motivation of participation motivation had a significant effect on organization Identification. Secondly, an intrinsic motivation which is a subfactor of participation motivation had a significant effect on the cognitive commitment of sport commitment, and extrinsic motivation had a significant effect on the cognitive and behavioral commitment of sport commitment. Thirdly, organization Identification had a partial mediating effect on the relation between participation motivation and sport commitment.BR Conclusion: The verification of mediating effect is identified as worthy of this study since participation motivation showed a positive effect on sport commitment via organization Identification, also this study can assist individual collegiate life and intimate friendship development through sport club activities.

Covert Audio Coaching to Increase Question Asking by Female College Students with Autism: Proof of Concept

Deficits in social-communication skills are a core feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Deficits in social communication progress into adolescence and adulthood, making complex social interactions particularly difficult and preventing the development of meaningful friendships. Interventions aimed to improve conversational skills needed to foster development of relationships for this age group are needed. Thus, the purpose of the current study was to evaluate the effectiveness and feasibility of instructional modules and covert audio coaching (CAC), on the frequency of question asking skills among college students diagnosed with ASD. Four college females diagnosed with ASD and six neurotypical peers participated in the current study. The effects of the instructional modules and covert audio coaching were evaluated using a concurrent multiple-baseline design. CAC was associated with variable increases in the frequency of question asking across participants. The introduction of a feedback phase resulted in further increases in the frequency of question asking for two of the participants. Results suggest that CAC is feasible and may be an effective tool to teach conversation skills to female college students with ASD. Further, participants indicated they found the intervention helpful and preferred it to other interventions in which they had previously experienced. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.

Half Foot Training Footwear for Safer and Faster Running from Masters Athletes to Professional Athletes

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) session in 2013 had chosen Tokyo as the host city for the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Games (Tokyo 2020 Games). After that, the preparation organization for Tokyo 2020 Games was established and Japan Olympic Committee (JOC), Japan Paralympic Committee (JPC) and other committees have continued various activities [1]. Thus, further development of international friendship and sports promotion has been expected. It can give various beneficial influences for wide range of sports, medical, economic and social fields [2].

‘My biggest fear was whether or not I would make friends’: working-class students’ reflections on their transition to university in Ireland

ABSTRACT Over the last few decades there has been increased recognition that the concept of ‘access’ encompasses not only entry to higher education (HE) but also participation and successful completion. Despite this, very little research has been carried out in Ireland on non-traditional students’ experience of university. This article explores the experiences of 16 students from lower socio-economic backgrounds at one Irish university, with particular reference to peer relationships and their sense of ‘belonging’. The research identified the challenges which these students faced in the first few months, including feelings of isolation and ‘class–cultural discontinuities’. For one student, from the Traveller community, the transition to university was particularly complex, leading to the ‘compartmentalisation’ of different elements of her life. The research also, however, highlights these students’ positive experiences of university life, which often centred on peer relationships and shared interests and aspirations. Overall, the research points to a diverse range of working-class experiences of university life, and the importance of targeted supports in actively encouraging friendship development in the early stages.

Interrelation between empathy and friendship development during (pre)adolescence and the moderating effect of developmental language disorder: A longitudinal study

AbstractThe association between empathy and friendship quality in children and adolescents is well established, but longitudinal studies are lacking. Because social interactions typically involve language, these relations might be moderated by children's communication problems. The current study examined the interrelation of friendship quality (positive and negative) and empathy (affective, cognitive, and prosocial motivation) development of 317 children (8–16 years old) at three time points across 18 months. Of these children 112 had a developmental language disorder (DLD). Results confirmed a bidirectional relation between empathy and friendship quality across time. Cognitive empathy and prosocial motivation contributed to the development of more positive friendship features in children with and without DLD. For children with unstable friendships, more cognitive empathy was related to fewer negative friendship features. Positive friendship features in turn contributed to higher empathy on all three aspects. Negative friendship features were related to higher affective empathy and lower prosocial motivation in both groups, but did not predict empathy development across time. These results imply that positive friendship features are important for development of empathic skills and vice versa that empathy enables children to grow in friendship quality in children with and without DLD.

The silver lining between perceived similarity and intergroup differences: Increasing confidence in intergroup contact

Abstract Positive intergroup contact and cross-group friendships are known to have numerous benefits for intergroup relations in diverse schools. However, children do not always spontaneously engage in cross-group friendships, choosing rather to spend time with their ingroup peers. Several factors have previously been identified that influence children’s confidence in contact and subsequent development of cross-group friendships, including perceived intergroup similarity and reconciliation of intergroup differences. However, inducing perceived similarity may pose a threat to the person’s social identity and increase the need for distinctiveness. Therefore, it remains unclear how one should manipulate perceived similarity and group boundaries when designing interventions that prepare school children for successful contact. Moreover, eliminating perceived group boundaries need not lead to the generalization of improved attitudes towards the outgroup. An optimal balance of inclusion and differentiation between the groups should be determined so as to make way for beneficial cross-group friendships. Based on a literature review, we provide recommendations for designing prejudice reduction interventions in schools from the perspective of intergroup similarity.

The effect of sharing styles on the development of friendship among university freshmen

The effect of sharing styles on the development of friendship among university freshmen

Guess who’s coming to dinner: an experimental investigation on primary and secondary school pupils’ social attitudes

ABSTRACT This paper describes the attitudes of pupils ranging from late childhood to adolescence towards diversity expressed as disability, other gender and race in a context of full inclusion. For the study, two experiments were carried out asking a large sample (i.e. 764 + 160) of participants to choose a hypothetical classmate to share a series of different activities with. The hypothetical classmate could be chosen between: same gender pupil; other gender pupil; same gender pupil of the prototypical racial minority; same gender pupil using a wheelchair. In turn, activities included: an outdoor, highly motor demanding, game; an indoor board game; a purely social activity; a scholastic activity; and a gesture of solidarity and good-will. Results clearly demonstrate that pupils’ decisions are strongly modulated by the activity itself rather than by ethnic factors. Pupils aged 9–14 appear to have developed a finely tuned sense of ‘what works in which situations’. Accordingly, while a visible disability turns out to be very effective in gaining sympathy and eliciting pity, it results in a serious obstacle for the development of a close friendship between peers.

"Someone's generosity has formed a bond between us": Interpersonal relationships in Internet-facilitated peer-to-peer milk sharing.

Internet-facilitated peer-to-peer milk sharing enables the giving and receiving of human milk between individuals previously unknown to one another. However, the process of milk sharing allows for milk sharing partners to develop relationships with one another. The development of relationships between 41 milk recipients and 97 milk donors in Internet-facilitated peer-to-peer milk sharing was explored via a questionnaire. Thirty-seven recipient respondents and 55 donor respondents placed some level of importance on developing a relationship with their milk sharing partner. Thirty-four recipient respondents and 48 donor respondents had developed a relationship with at least one milk sharing partner, from acquaintanceship to close friendship. Respondents also described milk kinship relationships. Friendships were commonly noted as a positive repercussion of milk sharing. Milk sharing stigma was the only commonly reported negative repercussion of milk sharing. Peer-to-peer milk recipients and donors are forced by circumstance and encouraged by the process of milk sharing and by their similarity to one another to trust each another, which acts as a catalyst to friendship development. Peer-to-peer milk sharing is a type of cooperative mothering wherein milk recipients are assisted in parenting their children via the gift of milk. However, reciprocity is evident as milk donors benefit from good feelings from helping another mother and child, pleasure through seeing the recipient infant grow, and often friendship with their milk recipient. Although Internet-facilitated peer-to-peer milk sharing is instigated by the impersonal medium of the Interweb, each milk sharing connection has the potential to become a real relationship.

A Peer Assisted Learning (PAL) approach to pre-service teacher professional experiences in Australia: organisational friendships

ABSTRACTThis study explored how students (pre-service teachers) benefit from the support of having a peer with them during their first professional experience in preschool contexts, utilising a PAL (Peer Assisted Learning) approach. International students at a large Australian University were interviewed as part of this qualitative study. We found that peer engagement facilitated the development of friendships and social support among participants. Discussion is situated within a sociological framework of organisational friendship. This study extends conceptions of organisational friendships beyond managerial imperatives and peer relationships are highlighted as supportive, not competitive, engagements. The PAL approach highlights the benefit of collaborative professional learning.

Is Housing a Predictor of Autonomy and Quality of Life of People with Severe Mental Illness? Implications for Social Work

ABSTRACTFor people with severe mental illness (SMI), housing type based on the level of professional input and support is an important factor in maintaining health. Housing impacts on quality of life (QOL); however, studies have not comprehensively explained the relationship between the types of housing and QOL. This scoping review investigates the relationship between the quality of life of people living with severe mental illness, housing, and objective sense of autonomy. Nine online databases were searched for studies published from 2000 onwards that identified research studies of adults with severe mental illness living in a variety of housing types. Fourteen studies met the eligibility criteria. The findings show that supported housing that offered access to trained staff led to a higher QOL and in turn an increase in autonomy. Allowing residents to choose their preferred type of housing also increased their QOL. Nonsupported group housing allowed for the development of friendships, which in turn had a positive impact on QOL, but there was little evidence to support this model. Despite this, social isolation and victimisation were areas of concern. This review adds to the body of evidence against transinstitutionalisation and emphasises the need for ongoing psychosocial interventions and support for people living with SMI in community settings.IMPLICATIONSDifferent housing options for residents living with severe mental illness can impact their quality of life.Policymakers and practitioners need to consider the impact of the level of support and sense of autonomy on the quality of life of residents living in supported and nonsupported housing.Social work can contribute professional expertise in developing a policy or framework to improve quality of life in society.

Parental sensitivity and friendship development: The mediating role of cooperation

AbstractInteractions with mothers and fathers form a critical foundation for youths’ later peer relationships. This study focused on the associations of maternal and paternal sensitivity in third grade with friendship outcomes in sixth grade. Because interactions with parents provide the earliest opportunities for children to learn prosocial behaviors such as cooperation, and cooperation is theoretically conceptualized as a foundation of friendship, cooperation may play a role in the link between parenting and children’s later social relationships. Using the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development sample (N = 955; 51% female; 83% White), and a multimethod, multireporter longitudinal design, children’s cooperation was tested as a mediating mechanism that linked parental sensitivity to early adolescent friendship. Results indicated that most indirect paths from both mothers and fathers’ sensitivity to observed friendship interactions and perceived friendship quality, via cooperation, were significant. Findings provide a more concrete understanding of how parental sensitivity translates to better friendships.

Diverse Learners, Diverse Backgrounds

Diverse Learners, Diverse Backgrounds

Parent Perceptions of Barriers to Friendship Development for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders

This current study explores parent perceptions of barriers to friendship development for highly verbal children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in mainstream academic settings. Participants were 10 parents of school-age children with ASD in mainstream classrooms. Findings from semistructured interviews and qualitative analysis pointed to five central themes regarding barriers to friendship development: propinquity, attempts at social exposure, common social problems within ASD, siblings as a protective factor, and parent networks. Results suggest parent networks among parents with mainstreamed children may help to facilitate social opportunities both in and out of school. Further investigation is needed to explore possible solutions to help parents to better support friendship development.

Promoting intercultural friendship among college students

ABSTRACTThis study assessed the efficacy of a semester-long buddy project in facilitating intercultural friendship development. Results of pre-, post-, and follow-up surveys show significant improvements in knowledge and attitude; correlations between post-project knowledge, attitude, and interest in continued contact; and correlations between interest in continued contact and actual contact in the follow up. The majority of the participants evaluated the project as effective for friendship formation. Of the follow-up respondents, 23% developed friendships with their former buddies. The project serves as an example for assignments with the potential for friendship development, which is essential for optimal intergroup contact.