Peer Reports Research Articles

Beyond delinquency and drug use: Links of peer pressure to long-term adolescent psychosocial development.

This study examined the predictors and sequelae of exposure to peer pressure from close friends in adolescence. Adolescents (99 female; 85 male) were followed from age 13 to 24 utilizing peer, parent, and romantic partner reports and observational data. Participants who were exposed to high levels of peer pressure as teens were more likely to experience higher levels of coercive behavior from romantic partners (as reported by those partners), as well as lower levels of parent-reported functional independence. All findings held even after accounting for baseline levels of teen assertiveness. Adolescents at risk for increasing exposure to peer pressure were characterized by poor-quality parent and peer relationships, as well as baseline deficits in ability to assert autonomy. Results suggest that exposure to peer pressure, aside from its potential effects on deviant or risky behavior, may reflect a powerful threat to the autonomy development process as adolescents transition from parents to peers as primary sources of support and interaction.

The Effect of Bias on Employee Suspicions of Coworker Guilt and Likelihood of Peer Reporting

ABSTRACT We explored the association between bias and the perception of a suspect’s guilt in alleged workplace theft. After presenting a case to participants, we asked them to assess the guilt of four possible suspects: two Black (male and female) and two White (male and female). We measured implicit and explicit racial and gender bias, leveraging two implicit association tests adapted from Levinson, Cai, and Young (2010) and two established explicit bias scales. We found that explicit racial bias is significantly associated with the overall perceived likelihood of guilt of the Black male suspect, and implicit racial bias is associated with the probability of selecting the Black male suspect from among the four. These associations disappeared after we provided additional facts about the case and the suspects. We further found that implicit and explicit racial biases are associated with the likelihood of peer reporting in an external investigation. Data Availability: Data are available upon request. JEL Classifications: M49.

Supporting teachers’ professional development in the social classroom dynamics domain with lesson study

PurposeDespite their pivotal role in classroom social dynamics, teachers are not always aware of, and/or do not know how to respond to, bottlenecks in these dynamics. This study investigated the effectiveness of the Social Classroom Dynamics Intervention with Lesson Study (SKILS, acronym of the Dutch program name) in supporting teachers with regards to improving their classrooms' social dynamics.Design/methodology/approachA sample of Dutch secondary school classrooms was divided into five SKILS classrooms (n = 86; 53.5% boys; Mage-T0 = 13.62 years and SD = 1.02 years) and nine control classrooms (n = 156; 50.6% boys; Mage-T0 = 13.55 years and SD = 0.89 years). Involvement in bullying and social cohesion was assessed pre- and post-intervention using student peer reports. Teachers of SKILS classrooms formed SKILS teams of five teachers (N = 25; 60% male; Mage-T0 = 42.45 years and SD = 12.81 years; teacher's experience: MT0 = 11.35 years and SD = 8.36 years). Teachers were interviewed post-intervention.FindingsWhile SKILS had little effect on classroom bullying dynamics, it had a positive effect on student social cohesion. Teachers indicated a learning effect with regard to identifying bottlenecks within classroom dynamics and felt more competent to intervene in response to bottlenecks due to SKILS.Originality/valueThe findings suggest that teachers can successfully impact classroom social cohesion by increasing their knowledge of classroom dynamics and working in Lesson Study (LS) teams with colleagues to develop tailored interventions for these dynamics.

The language of power: Interpersonal perceptions of sense of power, dominance, and prestige based on word usage

We examined whether people can accurately judge the experienced power, dominance, and prestige of others based on short texts, and what linguistic cues are related to these hierarchy-related variables. Past research suggests that personality is reflected in language, but hierarchy—another important feature in human relationships—has not been fully considered. In two studies with a zero-acquaintance setting, judges ( N1/2 = 105/202) read self-descriptions of speakers ( N1/2 = 200/200) and completed peer ratings of speakers’ power, dominance, and prestige. Speakers completed the same scales as self-ratings. We found substantial associations between the hierarchy concepts and several word categories (e.g., sense of power was negatively related to tentative words in self- and peer reports). For power and prestige, judges and speakers used the same linguistic cues for their assessments. Further, judges converged strongly in their assessments and showed high self-other agreement for all variables. We conclude that social hierarchy concepts are enacted in language and can be perceived from minimal verbal information. The findings show the importance of distinguishing between various hierarchy concepts when analyzing language correlates and have implications for testing power theories with linguistic material and the understanding of perceptions regarding hierarchy differences and following downstream consequences.

When thinking you are better leads to feeling worse: Self-other asymmetries in pro-social behavior and increased anxiety during Covid-19.

Self-serving biases (e.g., beliefs that one tends to perform better than peers) are generally associated with positive psychological outcomes like increased self-esteem and resilience. However, this tendency may be problematic in the context of collective action problems, wherein individuals are reliant on others' pro-social behaviors to achieve larger goals. We examined this question in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic, and recruited participants for an online study (n = 1023) from a university community in Spring 2020. We found evidence for self-peer asymmetries in Covid-related knowledge and restriction behavior, such that participants reported that they knew more about Covid-related symptoms, were doing more to stop the spread of the disease, and were more pro-socially motivated in doing so than peers. Actual peer reports indicated that these were overestimations. This self-enhancement comes with a cost: the perceived self-peer restriction behavior asymmetry had an indirect effect on the positive relationships both from Covid-specific worry and from perceived stress to general anxiety symptom intensity during the early lockdown period. People tended to have more severe symptoms of anxiety when they were more worried about Covid-19 and when they reported greater perceived stress, especially when they underestimated others' contributions to public health action relative to their own. This suggests that lack of trust in others' pro-sociality may be personally maladaptive for mental health.

Are Empathic People Better Adjusted? A Test of Competing Models of Empathic Accuracy and Intrapersonal and Interpersonal Facets of Adjustment Using Self- and Peer Reports

Are individuals adept at perceiving others’ emotions optimally adjusted? We extend past research by conducting a high-powered preregistered study that comprehensively tests five theoretical models of empathic accuracy (i.e., emotion-recognition ability) and self-views and intra- and interpersonal facets of adjustment in a sample of 1,126 undergraduate students from Canada and 2,205 informants. We obtained both self-reports and peer-reports of adjustment and controlled for cognitive abilities as a potential confounding variable. Empathic accuracy (but not self-views of that ability) was positively related to relationship satisfaction as rated by both participants and informants. Self-views about empathic accuracy (but not actual empathic accuracy) were positively related to life satisfaction as rated by both participants and informants. All associations held when we controlled for cognitive abilities.

A meta-analysis study on peer influence and adolescent substance use

AbstractThe extent to which adolescents are influenced by their peers has been the focus of developmental psychological research for over 50 years. That research has yielded contradicting evidence and much debate. This study consists of a systematic review and meta-analysis, with the main aim of quantifying the effect of peer influence on adolescent substance use, as well as investigation into the factors that moderate this effect. Included studies needed to employ longitudinal designs, provide the necessary statistics to calculate cross-lagged regression coefficients controlling for target adolescent’s initial substance use, and comprise participants aged 10–19 years. A search of academic databases and reference lists generated 508 unique reports, which were screened using Covidence. The final inclusion criteria yielded a total of 99 effect sizes from 27 independent studies. A four-level meta-analytic approach with correction to allow the inclusion of multiple effect sizes from a given study was used to estimate an average effect size. Results revealed a significant effect of peer influence ($$\overline{\upbeta }$$ β ¯ = .147, p < .001), indicating that adolescents changed their substance use behaviour in accordance with their peers’ perceived or actual use. Moderation analyses found peer influence effects varied significantly as a function of substance use behaviour (categorised as alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, or composite substance use) and peer influence measure (perceived vs. actual peer report); however, no significant effects emerged in the multivariate moderation model simultaneously examining all five main moderators. These results suggest that adolescent substance use is affected by peer influence processes across multiple substance use behaviours and both directly and indirectly through perceived norms. This has significant implications for substance use prevention, including the potential of harnessing peer influence as a positive force and the need to target misperceptions of substance use.

Enhancing first‐grade students' social skill performance: The interaction of tootling and activities on social skill engagement

AbstractWe extended research on social skills training to determine if the activities first‐grade students were engaged in while Tootling would influence their performance of two recently trained social skills: complimenting and encouraging peers. After receiving social skills training, students engaged in two experimental small‐group activities, a cooperative activity and a parallel‐play activity. During both activities, a Tootling intervention was applied and interdependent group rewards (e.g., every student in the class receives the reward) were delivered contingent upon the number of peer reports of classmates providing compliments and encouragements meeting an unknown, randomly selected criterion. Students also engaged in their typical classroom activity, an individual competition, without Tootling. Statistical analysis indicated that during the cooperative‐play activity there were significantly higher levels of complimenting and encouraging than during the parallel‐play and individual competition activities. More compliments were delivered during the parallel‐play activity than during the individual competition, but there was no significant difference in encouragements across the two conditions. Also, during the parallel‐play activity, compliments where higher than encouragements. These findings suggest that after social skills training, Tootling can enhance social skill performance when educators schedule activities that provide opportunities to engage in these recently trained skills. Discussion focuses on task and goal structures associated with activities and applied implications for enhancing social skill development.

The interpretation of discrepancies between peer victimization experiences reported by different informants in capturing victimization-related genetic liability. Acommentary on Armitage etal.(2022).

A recent work published in this journal by Armitage etal. reported that wellbeing-related genetic scores (PGS) are associated with self-informed peer victimization questionnaires. In contrast, peer- and teacher-informed measures would capture intelligence and educational attainment PGS better. However, we argue that this dichotomy does not find comprehensive support in the literature; instead, informants other than self and especially peers may provide reports from angles particularly relevant to mental health. For example, peer reports may more objectively capture adverse social reactions evoked by genetic factors (i.e., evocative gene-environment correlations). Thus, we recommend caution in generalizing the conclusion that self-reports capture the association between genetic contribution to mental health and peer victimization better than other-informant measures, as different gene-environment mechanisms may be at play.

Perceived Weirdness: A Multitrait-Multisource Study of Self and Other Normality Evaluations

Research in personality and organizational psychology has begun to investigate a novel evaluative trait known as perceived normality, defined as an overall perception that one is normal (vs. strange or weird). The current work evaluates a brief measure of this trait (i.e., a “weirdness scale”), extending past work by assessing both self-reports and peer reports of these normality evaluations. Results confirm the measurement equivalence of self- and peer-reports of perceived weirdness, and discriminant validity of self- and peer-reports of perceived weirdness from Big Five traits. A multitrait-multisource analysis further reveals that trait loadings are larger than self-report and peer-report method loadings for the measure of perceived weirdness. Implications for measurement of self-perceptions and social perceptions of weirdness/normality are discussed.

Maternal encouragement of competitiveness and school adjustment in Chinese adolescents.

Due to rapid urbanization and modernization, individual competitiveness has become increasingly important for individuals to acquire success in the contemporary Chinese society. This 1-year longitudinal study examined the relations between maternal encouragement of competitiveness and adjustment in Chinese adolescents (N = 1,493, 720 boys, Mage = 13 years). Maternal encouragement of competitiveness was assessed using child reports, and information on adolescents' adjustment was obtained from peer reports, teacher ratings, and school records. The results showed that maternal encouragement of competitiveness was negatively related to later teacher-rated learning problems. Moreover, maternal encouragement of competitiveness positively contributed to later peer-assessed assertiveness and social status among those who were initially high on assertiveness and social status. The results were discussed in the Chinese context. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Peer Innovation Tone and Corporate Innovation Adjustments: Evidence from China*

AbstractUsing textual information regarding innovation in the annual reports of Chinese listed firms for the period from 2007 to 2019, we examine how firms alter their innovation activities in response to the tone of peer firms' discussions of innovation in their annual reports (“innovation tone”). We find that a positive innovation tone in peer firms' annual reports results in a significant reduction in R&D investments by the focal firm, especially when such a tone pertains to the future. Our cross‐sectional analyses show that peers' innovation tone strongly affects R&D investments when the focal firm operates in a non‐high‐tech or highly competitive industry, or is readily willing to adjust its innovation strategy. Further investigation shows that the marginal benefits of a focal firm's R&D investments decline when annual peer reports adopt relatively positive innovation tones. Our results enrich the literature on the peer effects of textual information on innovation and have implications for firms' innovation strategies.

The Impact of the Consistency of Child Witness and Peer Reports on Credibility.

Adults' perceptions of children's disclosures have important implications for the response to that disclosure. Children who experience adult transgressions, such as maltreatment, often choose to disclose this experience to a peer. Thus, peer disclosure recipients may transmit this disclosure to an adult or provide support for the child's own disclosure. Despite this, the influence of peer disclosure on a child witness's credibility, as well as on the perceptions of peer disclosure recipients, is unknown. The present study examined how child witnesses' and peer disclosure recipients' credibility is impacted when the peer either confirms or contradicts the witness's disclosure (or concealment) of an adult transgression. Participants listened to a child witness and peer being interviewed by an adult in one of four disclosure patterns (consistent disclose, consistent conceal, witness disclose/peer conceal, or witness conceal/peer disclose). Participants rated both the witness and the peer on dimensions of credibility (honesty and cognitive competence). Results revealed that both the witness and peer were more credible when their reports were consistent with one another. When inconsistent, the witness/peer who disclosed was considered more credible than the one who concealed. The findings indicate the potential importance of peers in the disclosure process as they may support the witness's report and even be a credible discloser when the witness is reluctant to disclose.

Fidelity in School-Based Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports: Current Status of Compliance.

The current study identified and compared different treatment fidelity reporting methods. This paper includes 2 studies. In Study 1, the researchers compared and contrasted 3 sources of fidelity obtained in a study previously published by the authors; whereas, Study 2 did the same using a structured review of the literature. Fidelity reporting methods included: self-reports, peer reports, observations, artifact review, and use of standardized procedures. Study 1: a statistically significant difference in fidelity results was identified between methods. Study 2: the most common method of reporting was no reporting (46%) followed by observations (25.6%), peer ratings (25.6%), and self-report (23.1%). When studies reported that fidelity was evaluated, 57% subsequently provided specific fidelity results. Given that intervention fidelity is reported differently depending on the method used, then standard guidelines are needed for how this construct should be assessed and reported in practice and research.

Autistic-Delivered Peer Support: A Feasibility Study.

Peer support has been an undeveloped pathway for filling the service gap and to generate employment opportunities for autistic individuals. Peer supports have been deployed widely in mental health and among veterans and understanding the utility of this service modality among autistic individuals illuminates opportunities for research, policy, and practice. This study examined characteristics of participants in an autistic-delivered peer support program and reports on use of and satisfaction with the program. Half of autistic participants had a co-occurring mental health diagnosis. Participants reported multiple areas of unmet needs and participant satisfaction with the program was high (90%). The findings of this study point toward autistic-delivered peer support as a promising avenue for future development.

Does mental well-being predict being perceived as a happy peer? A longitudinal social network study

Social processes depend on individual features that make possible the development of social relationships and strong ties. Mental well-being (i.e., emotional, social, and psychological) in particular plays a key role in these processes influencing the formation of social ties. However, little is known about the potential of perceiving individuals as happy because of their levels of mental well-being. The aim of the study is to perform a longitudinal social network analysis to explore how mental well-being predicts being perceived as a happy individual. The study sample comprised 240 first-year university students and data were gathered through self-reported measures and peer reports, asking the students to select happy peers according to their perceptions. Results confirmed that mental well-being influenced the judgments of individuals regarding being perceived as a happy peer at zero-acquaintance level. These findings support mental well-being as an important resource to facilitate the development of social relationships.

Social adjustment of approach-oriented adolescents varies depending on their avoidance orientation

Adolescents set different goals in their interactions with peers—some place high importance on demonstrating their social competence (demonstration approach), others on avoiding showing their incompetence (demonstration avoidance), and some youth prioritize both or care about neither. In this study, we examined whether associations between demonstration approach and adjustment would vary depending on the level of demonstration avoidance. Participants (N = 595; Mage = 16.02 years, SD = 0.33) completed self-reports of social goals (in ninth grade), and peer reports of aggression, prosocial behavior, popularity, and likeability (in sixth and ninth grade). The degree to which approach-oriented adolescents were more aggressive and popular varied depending on whether they were high or low in avoidance. Approach-aggression links became stronger as avoidance increased from low to high; the reverse was true for popularity. Our discussion focuses on understanding how fear of failure and negative evaluations, or lack thereof, can alter the adjustment outcomes for approach-oriented adolescents.

The Importance of Context for Multi-informant Assessment of Peer Victimization

Peer victimization has been assessed by using various methods, with little attention to methodological variance. Peer victimization assessments of 238 girls (M age = 9.77 years; 50% Black, 50% White) made by peers, teachers, and self in school, and peers and observers in afterschool playgroups, enabled examination of context and reporter effects on measurement. Results underscored the importance of context: (1) Victimization reported by informants in the same context (i.e., teachers and peers in school setting, and peers and observers in playgroup setting) correlated more strongly than with self-reported victimization. (2) Informant ratings of victimization made within similar contexts (school and afterschool playgroups) showed higher agreement than those made in different contexts (school vs. playgroups) even if the same reporter was used across both contexts (peer report in schools and peer report in playgroups). (3) Teacher-reported victimization was more strongly associated with objective academic outcomes than were peer-, self-, or observer-reported victimization, due to the shared academic context.

Understanding post-pandemic work-from-home behaviours and community level energy reduction via agent-based modelling

An agent-based model (ABM) was developed to simulate post-pandemic work-from-home (WFH) behaviours based on social behaviour theories (conservation of resources theory and small-world theory). Key decision factors affecting WFH behaviour are identified, including environment constraints (social influences of family members and colleagues), resource constraints, and personal stress tolerance. The model is validated by a previous full-time worker survey which collected almost 2000 effective responses. Scenario simulations were carried out to understand the impacts of these factors on WFH behaviour. Three sets of results are generated: (1) the proportion of employees choosing to work at the office, (2) the proportion of employees choosing to WFH, and (3) community level energy consumption compared to business-as-usual. Analysis shows that environment and resource constraints discourage employees from WFH, leading to 8–12% more workers preferring the office as the workplace, so that community level energy saving is less significant (14–21% variation). However, as agents adapt to new a WFH arrangement and personal stress tolerance increases, more agents choose WFH for consecutive days, with 19% fewer workers choosing the office. The community level energy consumption saving increases by 42% when employees have higher stress tolerance. Analysis across all four simulated scenarios reveals that improving personal stress tolerance is the most effective means for achieving more significant community level energy reduction. The modelling results are compared with peer reports, and policy implications are discussed. This study contributes to the understanding of socio-environmental aspect of WFH by shedding light on worker decision-making processes when selecting their workplace based on behaviour theories and quantifying the variation of community level energy reduction according to different WFH arrangements.

Getting under the skin: long-term links of adolescent peer relationship difficulties to adult vagal tone.

Understanding whether and how the absence of positive relationships may predict longer-term physical health outcomes is central to building a working conceptual model of the interplay of social and physical development across the lifespan. This study sought to examine the extent to which difficulties establishing positive social relationships from adolescence onward serve as long-term predictors of low adult vagal tone, which in turn has been linked to numerous long-term health problems. A diverse community sample of 141 individuals was followed via multiple methods and reporters from age 13 to 29. Across this span, social relationship quality was assessed via close friend and peer reports, observations of romantic interactions, and self-reported romantic relationship satisfaction. A range of potential personality and functional covariates was also considered. Vagal tone while at rest was assessed at age 29. Adult vagal tone was predicted across periods as long as 16years by: adolescents' difficulty establishing themselves as desirable companions among peers; early adults' inability to establish strong close friendships; and lack of warmth in romantic relationships as an adult. Poor early adult friendship quality statistically mediated the link from adolescent peer difficulties to adult vagal tone. A range of potential confounding factors was examined but was not linked to vagal tone. Within the limits of the correlational design of the study, robust connections between adult vagal tone and social relationship quality from adolescence onward suggest at least a possible mechanism by which relationship difficulties may get 'under the skin' to influence future physiological functioning.