Explaining variability in sibling conflict resolution strategies during middle childhood

The goal of this dissertation was to identify the correlates of 4- to 10-year-olds' strategies for resolving actual sibling conflicts. A sample of62 sibling dyads participated in two sessions with their primary caregivers (54 mothers, 7 fathers, 1 legal guardian). Each child was interviewed privately about two recurring conflicts; in one session, siblings subsequently attempted to resolve the conflict in a dyadic negotiation, and in the other, during a triadic negotiation with their caregiver. Measures of siblings' conflict strategies in the home, social-cognitive abilities, and relationship quality were also administered. In Study 1, siblings' conflict strategies and outcomes were examined as a function of age, birth order, and parental interventions into children's conflict. Siblings' conflict strategies became more constructive with age. Further, parents' constructive intervention strategies (e.g., future planning, developing understanding) were related to siblings' independent use of constructive strategies and achievement of compromise outcomes, but especially when children liked each other. In Study 2, associations between children's social understanding and conflict strategies were tested. There were unique patterns of association for each measure of social-cognitive ability (i.e., second-order false belief, conflict interpretive understanding, and narrative references to conflict perspectives). However, links between younger siblings' social understanding and conflict behaviour typically depended on how much siblings liked each other. In Study 3, siblings' conflict outcomes were examined as a function of each sibling's description of conflict (i.e., issues, culpability, and emotions). Siblings compromised more when their narratives included references to physical hann and when they described feeling sad during conflict. Children were less likely to compromise when they (a) described fairness/right violations in their conflict narratives, and (b) believed that their sibling was solely culpable for a fight. In sum, to best explain variability in sibling conflict strategies, results highlight the need to consider features of siblings' (a) family system (e.g., behaviour socialized by parents), (b) individual characteristics (e.g., social understanding,), (c) dyadic motivations (e.g., relationship quality), and (d) descriptions of specific conflicts. In particular, results suggest that despite sophisticated social and cognitive skills, children will not engage in constructive sibling conflict strategies unless they are motivated to do so

Running Head: HARMING FRIENDS AND SIBLINGS “Two for flinching”: Children’s and Adolescents ’ Narrative Accounts of Harming Their Friends and Siblings

This study investigated differences in children’s and adolescents ’ experiences of harming their siblings and friends. Participants (N = 101; 7-, 11-, and 16-year-olds) provided accounts of events when they hurt a younger sibling and a friend. Harm against friends was described as unusual, unforeseeable, and circumstantial. By contrast, harm against siblings was described as typical, ruthless, angry, and provoked, but also elicited more negative moral judgments and more feelings of remorse and regret. Whereas younger children were more self-oriented with siblings and other-oriented with friends, accounts of harm across relationships became somewhat more similar with age. Results provide insight into how these two relationships serve as distinct contexts for sociomoral development. HARMING FRIENDS AND SIBLINGS 3 “Two for flinching”: Children’s and Adolescents ’ Narrative Accounts of Harming Their Friends and Siblings It has long been recognized that children’s close relationships with other children are fundamental contexts for their moral development (Piaget, 1932; Sullivan, 1953). Through their shared histories with familiar others, children learn about moral concepts such as rights, justice

In-service Professional Development and Constructivist Curriculum: Effects on Quality of Child Care, Teacher Beliefs, and Interactions

The purpose of this study was to assess three methods of delivering in-service professional development regarding constructivist curriculum for early childhood educators. Educators in 44 not-for-profit child care centres in three Canadian cities were studied; 94 educators with formal preservice training participated. The three methods were (a) a consultant model, (b) workshops, and (c) a readings group. Global classroom quality was assessed with the Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale-Revised ([ECERS-R], Harms, Clifford, & Cryer, 2005), educators were interviewed about their beliefs regarding curriculum, and modified running record observations of educator-child interactions (i.e., guidance, directives) were assessed before and after the 15-week intervention. Over time the consultant model was associated with an increase in guidance interaction (i.e., promoting children’s learning and development). A number of findings related to site were evident for quality of child care and educator beliefs, and highlight the challenges associated with conducting multi-site research studies. Implications for providing in-service professional development regarding curriculum are discussed. L’objectif de cette étude était d’évaluer trois méthodes de prestation de développement professionnel offert sur place et portant sur un programme d’études constructiviste pour éducateurs de la petite enfance. Quatre-vingt-quatorze éducateurs avec une formation d’orientation formelle et provenant de 44 garderies sans but lucratif dans trois villes canadiennes ont participé à l’étude. Les trois méthodes employées étaient les suivantes : (a) un modèle de consultation, (b) des ateliers et (c) un groupe de lectures.  Nous avons évalué la qualité globale de la classe d’après l’échelle d’évaluation révisée du milieu d’apprentissage de la petite enfance (Early Childhood Environment Rating Scale-Revised, Harms, Clifford, & Cryer, 2005), passé en entrevue les éducateurs pour connaitre leurs croyances par rapport au programme d’études et évalué, avant et après les 15 semaines d’intervention, des fiches d’observation individualisée modifiées portant sur les interactions entre l’éducateur et les enfants (conseils, directives). À la longue, un lien s’est établi entre le modèle de consultation et une augmentation de l’interaction impliquant des conseils (stimulation du développement et de l’apprentissage des enfants). Plusieurs des conclusions liées au site étaient évidentes en ce qui concerne la qualité de la garde des enfants et les croyances des éducateurs, et elles font ressortir les défis découlant des projets de recherche impliquant plusieurs sites. Nous évoquons les implications de fournir du développement professionnel portant sur les programmes d’études

Self-Continuity Moderates the Association Between Sexual-Minority Status Based Discrimination and Depressive Symptoms

Self-continuity, or how an individual understands their sense of self as persisting from past to present and present to future, is an important aspect of the self-concept that is linked to mental health outcomes. This self-concept construct may be particularly pertinent for sexual minority populations, as living in a heterosexist environment may prove detrimental for the development of self-continuity. The current study examined self-continuity among sexual minority and heterosexual community college and university students (N = 292). Compared to their heterosexual peers, sexual minority participants reported lower levels of self-continuity. Self-continuity moderated the associations between victimization due to gender nonconformity and victimization due to sexual minority status and depressive symptoms, such that higher levels of self-continuity were protective among individuals who were experiencing higher levels of victimization due to gender nonconformity or sexual minority status. Findings will be discussed in terms of their implications for identity development among emerging adults

Self-Continuity Moderates the Association Between Peer Victimization and Depressed Affect

Two longitudinal studies conducted with early adolescents (ages 10–13) examined the hypothesis that self-continuity, or the degree to which individuals feel that they remain the same person over time regardless of how their specific characteristics may change, would moderate the association between victimization and depressed affect. Both Study 1 (N = 141) and Study 2 (N = 100) provided evidence of the moderating role of self-continuity as a buffer on the effect of peer victimization. Study 2 confirmed that self-continuity had a moderating effect after controlling for academic performance, number of friends, self-esteem, self-concept clarity, hopelessness, and self-blame. Findings support self-continuity as being protective with regard to negative peer environments

The Juxtaposition of Revenge and Forgiveness in Peer Conflict Experiences of Youth Exposed to Violence

In a sample of 95 urban Colombian mid-adolescents, this mixed-method study examined how youths’ retaliatory desires and actions were juxtaposed with forgiveness and nonforgiveness in their narrative accounts of peer conflict. Quantitative analyses examined how retaliatory desire and action were associated with variations in youths’ lifetime exposure to violence and recent victimization by peers at school. These measures of violence exposure were related to revenge only in the context of unforgiven harms. Qualitative analyses explored aspects of youths’ narrative accounts that may underlie the observed associations. Overall, findings suggest that exposure to violence may interfere with youths’ capacity to reflect on revenge in ways that recognize their own fallibility and thus open the door to forgiveness

How People Understand Risk Matrices, and How Matrix Design Can Improve their Use: Findings from Randomized Controlled Studies.

Risk matrices are a common way to communicate the likelihood and potential impacts of a variety of risks. Until now, there has been little empirical work on their effectiveness in supporting understanding and decision making, and on how different design choices affect these. In this pair of online experiments (total n = 2699), we show that risk matrices are not always superior to text for the presentation of risk information, and that a nonlinear/geometric labeling scheme helps matrix comprehension (when the likelihood/impact scales are nonlinear). To a lesser degree, results suggested that changing the shape of the matrix so that cells increase in size nonlinearly facilitates comprehension as compared to text alone, and that comprehension might be enhanced by integrating further details about the likelihood and impact onto the axes of the matrix rather than putting them in a separate key. These changes did not affect participants' preference for reducing impact over reducing likelihood when making decisions about risk mitigation. We recommend that designers of risk matrices consider these changes to facilitate better understanding of relationships among risks

Gender minoritized students and academic engagement in Brazilian adolescents: Risk and protective factors

Gender minoritized students experience unique challenges in their school environments that may have consequences for their educational outcomes, including academic engagement. The goal of the current study was to understand the association between gender identity and academic engagement among adolescents attending public high schools in Paraná, Brazil (N = 10,828). In particular, student perceptions of student-teacher relationships, school rule fairness and clarity, school-wide academic engagement, and peer victimization were examined as four facilitator/barrier factors that may account for lower levels of academic engagement for gender minoritized students as compared to their cisgender peers, and these processes were tested for differences across race/ethnicity. Public high school students (ages 12–18 years) completed an in-class survey assessing their gender identities, perceptions of the school environment, and academic engagement. Gender minoritized students reported significantly lower levels of academic engagement as compared to their cisgender peers. They also reported less clear and fair school rules, lower levels of school-wide academic engagement, and higher levels of victimization. These facilitator/barrier variables partially accounted for the lower levels of academic engagement reported by gender minoritized students. No significant differences were observed for gender identity according to race/ethnicity. These findings suggest that facilitators/barriers that account for academic engagement for students in general partially explain gender identity-related disparities, and the implications for school psychologists are discussed

Distinctions between experiences of anger and sadness in children's and adolescents' narrative accounts of peer injury

Children’s varied emotions following peer injury may reflect distinct ways of understanding and coping with such events. This study examined how children’s references to anger and sadness in their accounts of peer injury were differentially related to narrative descriptions of their motivations, interpretations, evaluations, and behavioral responses, as well as the relationships in which harm occurred. We also explored how these associations between emotions and other narrative elements varied with age. The study was based on a corpus of 275 transcripts of oral narratives recounted by equal numbers of boys and girls across three age groups: 7, 11, and 16 years. In line with functionalist theories, anger was uniquely linked to maximizing attributions, indignation, and aggression, after accounting for age and gender. Sadness was related to harm in close relationships and relational goals, underlining the value placed on relationships with the offender, as well as a sense of powerlessness and confusion. Some associations between emotions and other narrative elements varied with age, suggesting that children’s experiences of anger and sadness became increasingly agentic and relationally oriented. Findings suggest how narrative constructions of meaning about peer injury may serve as contexts for reflecting on how anger and sadness emerge from and are resolved through interpersonal relationships

Social-cognitive predictors of siblings' self-serving biases

This study investigated the associations between children's social-cognitive abilities, their conversations about internal states with family members, and their later self-serving biases in descriptions of the sibling relationship. At Time 1, 32 preschoolers were observed during two naturalistic interaction sessions with mothers and younger siblings. Various features of mothers' and children's internal state (IS) language were coded. Each child also completed a battery of three social-cognitive measures. Two years later, 26 children were interviewed about various aspects of their sibling relationship, and responses were coded for five measures of self-serving bias. Although children's social-cognitive skills were not strongly related to their later self-serving biases, there were a number of associations between families' IS talk and children's later biases. In general, results indicated that children who were other-oriented in the content and function of their IS language and who discussed internal states in causally connected ways tended to exhibit fewer self-serving biases two years later. In addition, when mothers were attentive to their children in conversations about internal states (as opposed to ignoring them, or being selectively focused on the baby), children tended to have fewer self-serving biases two years later. Thus, these results support the social-constructivist notion that the quality of children's earlier interactions with family members is related to the way they construe themselves in comparison to their siblings