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A Study of Friendship Characteristics and Problem Behaviors among Middle Adolescents
Author(s) -
Windle Michael
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.103
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1467-8624
pISSN - 0009-3920
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-8624.1994.tb00847.x
Subject(s) - hostility , psychology , friendship , covert , developmental psychology , normative , interpersonal relationship , clinical psychology , social psychology , linguistics , philosophy , epistemology
Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used with a 15‐item adolescent self‐report measure to identify 4 salient friendship characteristics—Reciprocity of Relations, Overt Hostility, Covert Hostility, and Self‐Disclosure—with a sample of about 1,100 middle adolescents. Higher levels of Overt and Covert Hostility and lower levels of Reciprocity of Relations with one's closest friend were associated with higher levels of alcohol consumption, percentage of friends who drink, delinquent activity, depressive symptoms, and suicidal behaviors. Self‐Disclosure was positively correlated with some adolescent problem behaviors, possibly reflecting developmental changes toward greater interpersonal involvement with friends in concert with age normative tasks such as increased alcohol use. Longitudinal, prospective analyses indicated that delinquent activity and depressive symptoms were significant lagged predictors of Overt and Covert Hostility, but that friendship characteristics were not significant lagged predictors of adolescent problem behaviors.