Interpersonal Perceptual Tendencies and Adjustment in Chinese Adolescents: Testing the Mediating Role of Peer Relationship

Accuracy and assumed similarity are the most central topics in the research area of interpersonal perception. These two interpersonal perceptual tendencies have been demonstrated to have beneficial effects on adults' psychological functioning independently. However, how and why they influence adolescent psychological adjustment is less well-understood. The present research aimed to examine the mediating role of peer relationships in the association between these two interpersonal perceptual tendencies and psychological adjustment in adolescents. In the first study, a sample of adolescents in their first year of college (N = 93, 63% girls, Mage = 17.45 years, SD = 0.52) were recruited from a university located in Eastern China. They completed the likableness ratings of Anderson's 200 adjectives. The top 10 personality traits with the lowest and highest likableness values were selected to measure adolescents' personality profiles. In the second study, a round-robin design in a real-life setting, a sample of Chinese adolescents in grades six to nine were recruited from two middle schools (N = 337, Ndyads = 918, 47% girls, Mage = 13.76, SD = 1.15). They were requested to rate themselves and their peers within the same group on various factors. Results revealed that adolescents could form an accurate perception of their peers' personalities and concurrently assume that their peers' personalities are similar to their own. More importantly, accurate interpersonal perception and a biased tendency towards assumed similarity could, directly and indirectly, benefit adolescent psychological adjustment through peer relationships.

The Link Between Positive and Negative Parenting Behaviors and Child Inflammation: A Systematic Review

Children's inflammation may be an important link between parenting behaviors and health outcomes. The aims of this systematic review were to: (1) describe associations between parenting behaviors and child inflammatory markers, and (2) evaluate the relevance of existing literature to the review question. Database searches identified 19 studies that included a measure of positive or negative parenting behaviors and a marker of child inflammation, 53% of which measured parental responsiveness/warmth. Greater parental responsiveness/warmth was associated with lower levels of child pro-inflammatory markers in 60% of studies. Across studies, the association between parenting and child inflammation varied as a function of parenting construct, inflammatory measure, and sample characteristics. Studies were highly relevant, with 42% rated 5 + out of 6 for study's ability to address links between parenting behavior and child inflammation. If future research uncovers causal effects of parenting behaviors on inflammation, parenting interventions could be employed as a preventative tool.