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Interpersonal Relationships, Emotional Distress, and Prosocial Behavior in Middle School Kathryn R

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Interpersonal Relationships, Emotional Distress, and Prosocial Behavior in Middle School Kathryn R JOURNALWentzel, McNamara OF EARLY / BEHAVIOR ADOLESCENCE IN MIDDLE / February SCHOOL 1999 Interpersonal Relationships, Emotional Distress, and Prosocial Behavior in Middle School Kathryn R. Wentzel Carolyn C. McNamara University of Maryland, College Park Investigated in this study was the contribution of peer acceptance, perceived support from peers, and family cohesion to prosocial behavior in young adolescents. Based on theories of peer socialization, it was hypothesized that being accepted by peers would have a direct relation to prosocial behavior. In addition, emotional distress was exam- ined as a possible mediator between adolescents’ perceptions of family and peer rela- tionships and prosocial outcomes. In a sample of 167 sixth-grade students, hypotheses were supported in that peer acceptance was related directly to prosocial behavior and emotional distress mediated relations between perceived support from peers and proso- cial behavior. Family cohesion was related negatively to distress but not to prosocial outcomes. The roles of parents and peers in promoting young adolescents’ social competence, as well as the importance of emotional well-being for positive social adjustment in middle school are discussed. Helping, sharing, and cooperating are critical aspects of social competence in early adolescence that predict diverse outcomes in academic (e.g., Wentzel, 1994) as well as interpersonal (e.g., Ford, 1996; Wentzel & Erdley, 1993) domains. Although important consequences of behaving in a prosocial man- ner have been well-documented, less is known about the socialization experi- ences that promote the development of prosocial behavior. Some theorists argue that positive relationships with peers are critical for the emergence of prosocial skills (Piaget, 1965; Sullivan, 1953), whereas others focus on the effects of healthy family relationships (Grusec & Goodnow, 1994; Hoffman, 1983). Few studies, however, have tested those relations in young adolescent samples. Therefore, in the present study the contribution of family and peer relationships to prosocial behavior was examined. Journal of Early Adolescence, Vol. 19 No. 1, February 1999 114-125 © 1999 Sage Publications, Inc. 114 Wentzel, McNamara / BEHAVIOR IN MIDDLE SCHOOL 115 The empirical literature provides strong evidence of significant relations of prosocial behavior to peer relationships as well as to aspects of family functioning. With respect to peer relationships, popular, well-accepted ado- lescents tend to be more prosocial than their rejected, unaccepted peers (Hampson, 1984; Wentzel & Caldwell, 1997; Wentzel & Erdley, 1993). Ado- lescents who believe they are well-accepted by their peers also display proso- cial behavior more often than do those who are not well-accepted (Wentzel, 1994, 1998). Of additional interest for the present study was that adolescents who report high levels of family cohesion also tend to behave in caring and socially responsible ways toward adults and peers (Feldman, Wentzel, & Gehring, 1989; Romig & Bakken, 1992). Although parenting styles have been the primary focus of research on antecedents of young children’s social competence (Baumrind, 1978, 1991; Zahn-Waxler, Radke-Yarrow, & King, 1979), the affective, cohesive quality of families as a unit has gained recent attention as a socialization construct relevant for adolescence (e.g., Amato, 1989; Feldman, Rubenstein, & Rubin, 1988; Feldman & Gehring, 1988; Wentzel & Feldman, 1996). Family cohesion captures essential aspects of family life including mutual support, general interdependence, and emo- tional closeness and has been related to a range of social and personal compe- tencies during adolescence (Amato, 1989). What is it about interpersonal relationships that promotes the develop- ment and display of prosocial behavior? One possibility is that social encoun- ters and experiences have a direct effect on the development and demonstra- tion of prosocial behavior. Proponents of a peer socialization perspective argue that peer relationships provide unique opportunities for children to learn and practice prosocial skills (Hartup, 1992; Kohlberg, 1969). Presumably, peer relationships provide a context in which conflicts can be resolved in a rela- tively egalitarian, reciprocal fashion (Piaget, 1965; Sullivan, 1953). Theorists have proposed that the psychological underpinnings of cooperative, proso- cial behavior, including the adoption of principles of reciprocity and mutual respect, can develop only out of that type of peer interaction. If this perspec- tive has merit, then children who are well-accepted by their classmates should benefit from peer interactions and be more likely to display a repertoire of positive, prosocial skills than would children who are not well-accepted. It also is possible that social relationships are related to prosocial behavior indirectly by way of adolescents’ emotional functioning. This second per- spective is based on the notion that ongoing social encounters with families and peers result in subjective beliefs about the supportive nature of these interpersonal relationships. These subjective beliefs then influence 116 JOURNAL OF EARLY ADOLESCENCE / February 1999 emotional well-being and future displays of competent behavior toward oth- ers. This perspective might be relevant especially for young adolescents, given that perceived emotional support can provide a buffer against feelings of depression and distress as they begin to decrease their emotional depend- ency on family members (Feldman et al., 1988). A mediational model of influence is supported by Parke and colleagues (Parke, Cassidy, Burks, Car- son, & Boyum, 1992) who suggest that family and peer contexts both play an influential role in the development of emotion-regulation skills in young chil- dren. In turn, Eisenberg and Fabes (1992) have proposed conceptual links between emotion-regulation and prosocial behavior. At a more general level, Cohen and Wills (1985) have argued that perceived support within the con- text of social relationships can heighten emotional well-being, which in turn can have positive effects on social competence. Although this mediational hypothesis has not been examined directly with respect to prosocial behavior, having positive relationships with families and peers has been related consistently to adolescents’ emotional well-being. Adolescents without friends and who are not accepted by their peers tend to report less positive perceptions of self-worth than do those who enjoy more positive relationships with peers (e.g., Harter, 1990). Low levels of family cohesion have been related consistently to feelings of depres- sion and emotional distress during adolescence (e.g., Feldman et al., 1988; Wentzel & Feldman, 1996). In addition, relations of emotional well-being to prosocial behavior are well-documented (Glyshaw, Cohen, & Towbes, 1989; Mussen, Rutherford, Harris, & Keasey, 1970; Wentzel & Caldwell, 1997). In summary, somewhat divergent perspectives on socialization experi- ences are believed to promote the development of prosocial behavior. There- fore, prosocial behavior in relation to family as well as to peer relationships was examined in the present study. Two possibilities were explored. First, based on theories of peer socialization, it was hypothesized that being accepted by peers would have a direct relation to prosocial behavior. In this case, acceptance by peers was believed to influence directly displays of pro- social skills in young adolescents. Second, it was expected that links between prosocial behavior and social relationships might be mediated by adoles- cents’emotional well-being. In this case, perceived family cohesion and per- ceived social support from peer relationships would be related to emotional well-being; in turn, emotional well-being would be related to displays of pro- social behavior. These relations are depicted in Figure 1. Wentzel, McNamara / BEHAVIOR IN MIDDLE SCHOOL 117 Figure 1: Hypothesized Relations Between Interpersonal Relationships, Distress, and Prosocial Behavior METHOD Participants The participants in this study were 167 sixth-grade students from a sixth- through eighth-grade middle school in a suburban, predominantly middle- class community. Approximately one-half of the students were female (n = 82) and 92% of the students were White (n = 154), with the remaining 8% of the sample being Black (n = 2), Hispanic (n = 3), Asian American (n = 4), and other ethnic status (n = 3). The participants comprised approximately one- half of the entire sixth-grade class. The classrooms were chosen by the school principal to represent a wide range of student abilities. All students in those classrooms participated unless parental permission was denied (n = 2). Measures Data were gathered in late Spring during regular class sessions. Students were told the purpose of the study was to find out what it was like to be a mid- dle school student by obtaining information from the experts, that is, the stu- dents themselves. Students were told that all of their answers would be confi- dential and that they did not have to answer any of the questions if they did not want to. Teachers remained in the classrooms during administration of measures. 118 JOURNAL OF EARLY ADOLESCENCE / February 1999 Peer acceptance. Peer acceptance was assessed using the procedure developed by Asher and Dodge (1986). Children were asked to respond on a 5-point scale (1 = not at all,5=very much) (“How much would you like to be in school activities with
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