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Dimensions of Peer Influences and Their Relationship to Adolescents’ Aggression, Other Problem Behaviors and Prosocial Behavior

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A Publisher Correction to this article was published on 30 November 2017

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Abstract

Although peers are a major influence during adolescence, the relative importance of specific mechanisms of peer influence on the development of problem behavior is not well understood. This study investigated five domains of peer influence and their relationships to adolescents’ problem and prosocial behaviors. Self-report and teacher ratings were obtained for 1787 (53 % female) urban middle school students. Peer pressure for fighting and friends’ delinquent behavior were uniquely associated with aggression, drug use and delinquent behavior. Friends’ prosocial behavior was uniquely associated with prosocial behavior. Friends’ support for fighting and friends’ support for nonviolence were not as clearly related to behavior. Findings were generally consistent across gender. This study highlights the importance of studying multiple aspects of peer influences on adolescents’ behavior.

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Change history

  • 30 November 2017

    Correction to: J Youth Adolescence (2017) 46:1351–1369. 10.1007/s10964-016-0601-4

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Authors’ Contributions

AF conceived of the study, completed the statistical analyses, participated in its design and coordination, and drafting of the manuscript; ET participated in the design and interpretation of the data and drafting of the manuscript; KM participated in the development of the measures and interpretation of the data, and drafting of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Funding

This study was funded by the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC Cooperative Agreements 5U01CE001956 and 1 U49 CE000730. The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Virginia Commonwealth University, P.O. Box 842018, Richmond, VA, 23284-2018, USA

    Albert D. Farrell & Erin L. Thompson

  2. Department of Psychology, Violence Prevention Initiative, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, 3535 Market St, Rm. 1464, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA

    Krista R. Mehari

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  1. Albert D. Farrell
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  2. Erin L. Thompson
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Correspondence to Albert D. Farrell.

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All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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A correction to this article is available online at https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-017-0788-z.

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Farrell, A.D., Thompson, E.L. & Mehari, K.R. Dimensions of Peer Influences and Their Relationship to Adolescents’ Aggression, Other Problem Behaviors and Prosocial Behavior. J Youth Adolescence 46, 1351–1369 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-016-0601-4

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