The Dissemination of Culture

Despite tendencies toward convergence, differences between individuals and groups continue to exist in beliefs, attitudes, and behavior. An agent-based adaptive model reveals the effects of a mechanism of convergent social influence. The actors are placed at fixed sites. The basic premise is that the more similar an actor is to a neighbor, the more likely that that actor will adopt one of the neighbor's traits. Unlike previous models of social influence or cultural change that treat features one at a time, the proposed model takes into account the interaction between different features. The model illustrates how local convergence can generate global polarization. Simulations show that the number of stable homogeneous regions decreases with the number of features, increases with the number of alternative traits per feature, decreases with the range of interaction, and (most surprisingly) decreases when the geographic territory grows beyond a certain size.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/67489/2/10.1177_0022002797041002001.pd

Friendship Relationships in Children and Adolescents: Positive Development and Prevention of Mental Health Problems

Studying childhood and adolescence from the perspective of Positive Development involves seeing them from the creation of skills and values that allow the child and the adolescent to move towards adulthood in a successful way, as well as considering them from the avoidance and prevention of violence, addiction, depression and other mental health problems.Developmental Psychology theorists such as Harry Stack Sullivan have put forward that friendships can provide a unique developmental context in which children and adolescents learn about Conflict and Negotiation and develop Perspective Taking Skills and Empathic Concern; also in that relationship, furthermore, they satisfy social needs of Companionship and Intimacy.First of all, in this chapter it is presented the Argentine adaptation of Bukowski Friendship Quality Scale (children´s version), an instrument that evaluates friendship quality and explores six dimensions of peer relationships: Companionship, Balance, Conflict, Help, Security and Closeness.Subsequently, two studies conducted with this instrument, in the adolescent version, are presented. The first study evaluates the relationship between Friendship quality and Loneliness feelings in adolescents. It is observed that the rejection of peers and loneliness self-perception feelings with their peers, are negatively correlated with Friendship quality dimensions: Balance, Companionship, Help, Security and Closeness. The Conflict Friendship dimension correlates positively with Family loneliness and Peer loneliness.In the second study, it is presented the results of the hierarchical regressions performed to evaluate Empathy and Values dimensions as predictive variables of Friendship Quality dimensions. Regarding Value Scale, Honesty is the best predictor of Friendship Quality dimensions; and regarding Empathy, Perspective Taking and Empathic Concern are the best predictors of Friendship Quality dimensions.Finally, it is considered how these contributions highlight the important role of friendship and peer relationships in the prevention of mental health problems.Fil: Rodriguez, Lucas Marcelo. Pontificia Universidad Catolica Argentina "santa Maria de Los Bs. As.". Facultad Teresa de Avila. Centro de Investigacion Interdisciplinar En Valores, Integracion y Desarrollo Social.; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Moreno, José Eduardo. Pontificia Universidad Catolica Argentina "santa Maria de Los Bs. As.". Facultad Teresa de Avila. Centro de Investigacion Interdisciplinar En Valores, Integracion y Desarrollo Social.; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Mesurado, Belén. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Saavedra 15. Centro Interdisciplinario de Investigaciones en Psicología Matemática y Experimental Dr. Horacio J. A. Rimoldi; Argentin

Factor Structure and Measurement Invariance of a Multidimensional Loneliness Scale: Comparisons Across Gender and Age

This study focuses on the factor structure of a multidimensional loneliness measure, that is, the Loneliness and Aloneness Scale for Children and Adolescents (LACA). Confirmatory factor analyses were conducted on a large sample of children and adolescents (N = 9,676) in Belgium. Results indicated that the supposed four-factor structure of the instrument showed a superior fit when compared to alternative, more parsimonious models. Measurement invariance was established across gender and across all age groups in the intended age range (i.e., elementary school to freshman year in college). Age comparisons indicated that parent-related loneliness and positive attitudes to aloneness increased throughout adolescence. In sum, the present study offers strong support based on strict tests for the factor structure of a particular multidimensional loneliness measure (LACA). Future research should extend such analyses to other multidimensional measures of loneliness. Keywords: Loneliness Aloneness Adolescence Confirmatory factor analysis Measurement invarianc