Recent models of adolescent development and psychopathology emphasize the importance of the social regulation of emotion during adolescence (Allen & Manning, 2007; Allen & Miga, 2010), and emotion regulation as a mediating factor between multiple aspects of adolescent development and adolescent adjustment (Morris, Silk, Steinberg, Myers, & Robinson, 2007). The present dissertation investigated these two phenomena in two separate studies of adolescent development, emotion regulation, and psychological adjustment. In study one, a new measure of adolescent social regulation of emotion – the Managing Distress Interpersonally Scale, or MANDI – showed good internal consistency, test-retest reliability and factor structure across two samples (217 college students in sample one and 63 community adolescents in sample two). The MANDI also showed good convergent and discriminant validity in its relations with independent assessments of adolescent emotion regulation, relationship functioning, psychological functioning, and physiological regulation of emotion. In study two, 64 community adolescents completed self-report, interview, and physiological procedures (salivary cortisol and respiratory sinus arrhythmia), while one of their parents also completed survey measures. Emotion regulation was found to mediate the developmental context and adolescent depressive symptoms, alcohol problems, and peer aggression. Findings are discussed in terms of the utility of intervening at the level of emotion regulation for adolescents displaying difficulty with internalizing and externalizing symptoms.

Contributing through the skills and capacities that they foster as well as through the quality of them, friendships have been identified as a powerful source of influence on adolescents romantic experiences. Unlike same-sex friendships, the influence of adolescents other-sex friendships on romantic relationships remains largely under-researched (Monsour, 2002; Sippola, 1999). In the current study I examined unique longitudinal and concurrent contributions of adolescents experiences of relational authenticity and intimacy in other-sex friendships to adolescents romantic intimacy and competence, while controlling for the influence of same-sex friendships.<p> Ninety-seven participants rated their perception of relational authenticity and relationship intimacy in Grade 9. In Grade 11 they rated their perception of friendship and romantic intimacy, as well as romantic competence. The present longitudinal findings showed that adolescents earlier perception of relational authenticity in other-sex friendships predicted their subsequent perception of romantic intimacy and competence. The corresponding experience in same-sex friendships predicted only romantic competence in Grade 11 and only when the influence of other-sex friendships was not being considered. Although same-sex friendship intimacy in Grade 9 also demonstrated unique links to romantic intimacy in Grade 11, other-sex friendship intimacy in Grade 9 showed no such links. With regard to concurrent findings in Grade 11, experiences of intimacy in same- and other-sex friendships both predicted romantic intimacy in Grade 11. A discussion of possible explanations to the present research results is offered. Future research is suggested.

Despite existing literature that demonstrates the relation between an attitude of social responsibility and activism; few studies have examined the underlying factor structure of social responsibility. The current study had two goals. The first goal was to examine the structure of a measure of social responsibility attitude for urban adolescents. The second goal was to examine the associations of social responsibility with civic and political activism. The participants were 221 adolescents from schools and youth serving organizations in metropolitan Atlanta, GA. Confirmatory factor analysis of social responsibility items revealed that a model with a single latent factor explained the data better than a two-factor model with one latent factor representing neighborhood social responsibility and the other representing global social responsibility. There were significant positive relations between social responsibility and civic activism and political activism when controlling for parental activism and peer activism. This study suggests that a social responsibility attitude may exist as a single factor amongst urban adolescents and it has added empirical support to show that higher levels of social responsibility are associated with greater depth of involvement in civic and political activism. Implications for both theory and practice are discussed.

Contributing through the skills and capacities that they foster as well as through the quality of them, friendships have been identified as a powerful source of influence on adolescents romantic experiences. Unlike same-sex friendships, the influence of adolescents other-sex friendships on romantic relationships remains largely under-researched (Monsour, 2002; Sippola, 1999). In the current study I examined unique longitudinal and concurrent contributions of adolescents experiences of relational authenticity and intimacy in other-sex friendships to adolescents romantic intimacy and competence, while controlling for the influence of same-sex friendships.<p> Ninety-seven participants rated their perception of relational authenticity and relationship intimacy in Grade 9. In Grade 11 they rated their perception of friendship and romantic intimacy, as well as romantic competence. The present longitudinal findings showed that adolescents earlier perception of relational authenticity in other-sex friendships predicted their subsequent perception of romantic intimacy and competence. The corresponding experience in same-sex friendships predicted only romantic competence in Grade 11 and only when the influence of other-sex friendships was not being considered. Although same-sex friendship intimacy in Grade 9 also demonstrated unique links to romantic intimacy in Grade 11, other-sex friendship intimacy in Grade 9 showed no such links. With regard to concurrent findings in Grade 11, experiences of intimacy in same- and other-sex friendships both predicted romantic intimacy in Grade 11. A discussion of possible explanations to the present research results is offered. Future research is suggested.

This study discusses the importance of theories of care that are especially relevant to students in middle school art classes. Middle school students are going through an increasing number of changes emotionally, mentally, and cognitively that can be explored through an art curriculum that teaches them the value of caring for themselves and others, while also meeting their developmental needs. In this thesis research, teaching strategies are discussed that will cultivate an environment of care in the middle school classroom. This information will be used in the construction of developmentally sequenced art lessons that put these caring attitudes, strategies, and practices into action through art studio and criticism lessons incorporating the national art education standards.

Parents’ beliefs about their ability to competently fulfill the duties of the parenting role have received limited research attention. The literature to date has emphasized the correlates and consequences of this construct, but relatively little work has examined factors that promote the development of parents’ efficacy beliefs. This dissertation research fills this gap by investigating predictors of parenting efficacy beliefs among immigrant Chinese families in Western Canada. Parenting efficacy beliefs were predicted to be influenced by support and encouragement from like-minded peers, and the successful completion of parenting tasks (mastery). This research explored these hypotheses by evaluating three questions. First, the research evaluated whether the receipt of support from Chinese- and Canadian-based sources, as well as spousal support would be associated with higher levels of parenting efficacy, as well as whether this association varied based on immigrant parents’ social context. There was no evidence that parents’ use of Chinese and Canadian supports was associated with feelings of efficacy, regardless of parents’ social context. The hypothesis that spousal support would be positively associated with parenting efficacy was supported for mothers, but not fathers. The second question evaluated whether mastery experiences, in the form of positive adolescent development in the domains of achievement, traditional Asian values and behavioural participation in the Chinese culture, were positively associated with parenting efficacy. There was no evidence of any main effects for these domains of adolescent functioning on parents’ feelings of efficacy. Third, the research evaluated parents’ socialization goals as a possible moderator of the association between adolescent development and parenting efficacy. It was hypothesized that the association between a domain of adolescent development and parenting efficacy would be strongest among parents who most strongly endorsed that domain as a socialization goal. This hypothesis was supported within domains of cultural development, but not academic achievement, and there was a different pattern of results for fathers and mothers. There was also an unexpectedly strong positive association between parents’ interdependence goals and feelings of parenting efficacy. Overall, the results suggested that feelings of parenting efficacy were relatively robust in the face of challenges associated with immigration (e.g., loss of support from culturally relevant sources) and minor violations of parents’ socialization goals. Furthermore, the results emphasized cultural retention as an important predictor of parenting efficacy. The results suggest two avenues of intervention that may assist in promoting feelings of parenting competence among immigrant Chinese parents: the development of a strong co-parenting relationship and the provision of support for cultural retention.

The present study is designed to address the problem of risk behaviors among adolescents, in an effort to promote positive developmental trajectories. Previous studies have resulted in divergent findings pertaining to the predictors of adolescent engagement in risk behaviors. In addition to considering this divergence, the focus of the study is the nature of bidirectional individual ó contextual relationships and their influence on adolescent engagement in risk behaviors. The study tested two models that considered whether parent-adolescent relationship or peer relationship mediated the relation between theory and research-based predictors and the endogenous variable, co-occurring substance use and sexual activity. Participants were 396 demographically diverse multi-problem adolescents from an archived dataset derived from an HIV risk reduction outpatient treatment program for alcohol and other drug use. Participants responded to questions that measured family structure, parent-adolescent relationship quality and communication, religiosity, school connectedness, peer relationship, and engagement in substance use and sexual activity. The study found that the model with peer relationship as the mediator fit the data better than the model with the parent-adolescent relationship mediator, and that the mediated model provided a better fit to the data than direct relations between the exogenous and endogenous variables. The results suggested also that primary caregiver was not a significant predictor of adolescent participation in co-occurring substance use and sexual activity. The present study provides a holistic theoretical and conceptual framework that highlights a constellation of factors determined to contribute significantly to co-occurring substance use and sexual activity, and thereby reshape existing models of risk behavior among adolescents.

<p>Similarity in academic achievement among friends (i.e., academic homophily) can arise from two processes, selection and influence. This study applied stochastic actor-based modeling using SIENA to disentangle friendship selection and social influence regarding academic achievement of Chinese adolescents in a three-year longitudinal sample of 880 middle school students (400 girls, year 1 mean age = 13.33) and 525 high school students (284 girls, year 1 mean age = 16.45). SIENA analyses revealed significant selection and influence effects pertaining to academic achievement for both middle school students and high school students across three years. Chinese adolescents preferred friendships with similarly achieving or higher achieving peers but avoided friendships with lower achieving peers. Friends’ influence on academic achievement can be both beneficial and detrimental. Chinese adolescents were more likely to increase in achievement when they befriended high-achieving peers, but decreased achievement when they were friends with low-achieving peers. There were no significant sex differences or school year differences (i.e., the first to second years versus the second to third years) in selection or influence effects for academic achievement. Influence effects were stronger for middle school students than for high school students, but no significant grade level differences emerged for selection effects. This study expands upon prior research by simultaneously assessing selection and influence effects on academic achievement and further examining the direction and strength of selection and influence processes regarding academic achievement using sophisticated modeling analyses. These results provide insights into the important role of cultural context in peer relationships and academic development by considering the strong pressure Chinese adolescents experience to be academically successful.</p>

This paper examines Samuel Richardson's 1740 novel Pamela through two modern models of adolescent development: moral development (Kohlberg and Turiel) and psychosocial development (Erikson, Marcia, and Luyckx et al.). It argues that the novel's eponymous heroine is a complex character who moves beyond the simple stereotypes, being neither a perfect model of feminine virtue nor a coquette on the prowl for a wealthy catch. By examining the developmental arcs Pamela experiences in the novel, it is possible to read her as a typical teenage girl who achieves virtue through errors and growth rather than a static character whose virtue (or simulacrum of it) maintains a flatline.

This study seeks to qualitatively examine the intersection between teachers' practical reasoning and beliefs, adolescent developmental needs, and positive teacher-student relationships. Positive comments about middle school teachers were gathered anonymously from middle school students (grades 6-8; ages 11-14) and coded according to four developmental domains: physical, social, emotional, and physical. Chi square analysis was used to determine statistical significance of which domains students alluded to most often when describing their teachers. The six middle school teachers who were mentioned most frequently in the student comments participated in semi-structured, open-ended interviews in which they were asked about the developmental needs of their students and responded to positive comments that students had made about them. Cross-case analysis was used to compare teacher attitudes and beliefs about teacher-student relationships and adolescent developmental needs, as well as to reveal practices teachers enacted in response to perceived needs. Findings suggest that teachers interpret a majority of student actions as indicative of underlying emotional needs, and that they use emotions as an entry point through which they can attend to the needs of students not just emotionally, but socially and cognitively as well. Teachers revealed in what ways they integrate developmentally appropriate classroom practices into their teaching based on their assumptions of need, including providing students a safe environment and using different types of humor in the classroom. Teacher perspectives on the characteristics of the ideal teacher surfaced, as well as how teachers tend to position themselves against students within the teacher-student relationship. Suggestions for teacher preparation programs as well as practicing teachers to place a greater focus on intentional developmentally appropriate teaching practices are given.