Bidirectional Associations of Prosocial Behavior with Peer Acceptance and Rejection in Adolescence

As most studies on the link between peer status and prosocial behavior are cross-sectional, conducted with children, and operationalize status as the difference between acceptance and rejection, it remains unclear whether peer acceptance and rejection are consequences or prerequisites of prosocial behavior in adolescence. To fill this gap, this study examines the bidirectional associations of prosocial behavior with peer acceptance and peer rejection with data collected at 3 time points, 6 months apart, in a sample of 660 early Chilean adolescents (M = 12.94, SD = 0.62; 55.1% boys). Cross-lagged panel analyses showed that prosocial behavior positively predicted future peer acceptance, whereas peer acceptance had no significant effect on future prosocial behavior. The association between rejection and prosocial behavior was negative and bidirectional between Time 1 and Time 2. When a new academic year began, between Time 2 and Time 3, prosocial behavior negatively predicted rejection, whereas rejection in the previous grade level was positively associated with prosocial behavior at the beginning of the next grade. Multi-group panel analyses did not detect significant differences between boys and girls in the cross-lagged associations of prosociality with peer acceptance and peer rejection. The results suggest that acting prosocially can make adolescents better liked by their peers and highlight the possible importance of the transition to a new academic year for the prosocial behavior of previously rejected students. Implications for future research on peer relations are discussed.

Rethinking minority stress: A social safety perspective on the health effects of stigma in sexually-diverse and gender-diverse populations

For over two decades, the minority stress model has guided research on the health of sexually-diverse individuals (those who are not exclusively heterosexual) and gender-diverse individuals (those whose gender identity/expression differs from their birth-assigned sex/gender). According to this model, the cumulative stress caused by stigma and social marginalization fosters stress-related health problems. Yet studies linking minority stress to physical health outcomes have yielded mixed results, suggesting that something is missing from our understanding of stigma and health. Social safety may be the missing piece. Social safety refers to reliable social connection, inclusion, and protection, which are core human needs that are imperiled by stigma. The absence of social safety is just as health-consequential for stigmatized individuals as the presence of minority stress, because the chronic threat-vigilance fostered by insufficient safety has negative long-term effects on cognitive, emotional, and immunological functioning, even when exposure to minority stress is low. We argue that insufficient social safety is a primary cause of stigma-related health disparities and a key target for intervention.

Peer Problems and Hyperactivity-Impulsivity Among Norwegian and American Children: The Role of 5-HTTLPR

Peer problems are linked to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms and the serotonin system is thought to be involved in ADHD-related behavior. Hence, from a Gene × Environment perspective, the serotonin transporter 5-HTTLPR may play a moderating role. In two large community samples, the moderating role of 5-HTTLPR was examined related to more hyperactivity-impulsivity symptoms (HI symptoms) predicted by more peer problems. In Study 1, involving 642 Norwegian children, results indicated that for s-allele carriers only, caregiver-reported peer problems at age 4 predicted more parent-reported HI symptoms at age 6. In Study 2, similar results emerged involving 482 American children. Discussion focuses on differential sensitivity to the adverse effects of poor peer relations.

Meta-analysis of the serotonin transporter promoter variant (5-HTTLPR) in relation to adverse environment and antisocial behavior

Several studies have suggested an association between antisocial, aggressive, and delinquent behavior and the short variant of the serotonin transporter gene polymorphism (5-HTTLPR). Yet, genome wide and candidate gene studies in humans have not convincingly shown an association between these behaviors and 5-HTTLPR. Moreover, individual studies examining the effect of 5-HTTLPR in the presence or absence of adverse environmental factors revealed inconsistent results. We therefore performed a meta-analysis to test for the robustness of the potential interaction effect of the "long-short" variant of the 5-HTTLPR genotype and environmental adversities, on antisocial behavior. Eight studies, comprising of 12 reasonably independent samples, totaling 7,680 subjects with an effective sample size of 6,724, were included in the meta-analysis. Although our extensive meta-analysis resulted in a significant interaction effect between the 5-HTTLPR genotype and environmental adversities on antisocial behavior, the methodological constraints of the included studies hampered a confident interpretation of our results, and firm conclusions regarding the direction of effect. Future studies that aim to examine biosocial mechanisms that influence the etiology of antisocial behavior should make use of larger samples, extend to genome-wide genetic risk scores and properly control for covariate interaction terms, ensuring valid and well-powered research designs. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.