Family and Peers

Angela M. Neal-Barnett, Josefina M. Contreras, Kathryn A. Kerns

Why is it that relationships with family members predict the quality of children's relationships outside the family? A wealth of research has documented that various aspects of family relationships are predictably related to the quality of children's interactions and relationships with peers. Understanding what account for these effects is important both for theories of children's relationships and intervention efforts to ameliorate children's peer relationship difficulties. This volume advances the field by discussing several mechanisms that may account for continuities across family and peer relationships.A variety of theoretical perspectives are represented in the book. For example, both learning and biological explanations are considered. Authors also note two key considerations in investigating family and peer relationships. First, it is necessary to consider the cultural context. The function and meaning of family and peer relationships may differ depending on what roles are played by these relationships in different cultural contexts. Second, it is necessary to consider the child's age. Developmental issues, such as concerns with establishing greater independence at the entrance to adolescence, will impact both family and peer relationships.

Introduction by Kathryn A. Kerns, Jeffery E. Aspelmeier and Patricia L. TomichEmotion Regulation Processes: Explaining Links between Parent-Child Attachments and Peer Relationships by Josefina M. Contreras and Kathryn A. KernsThe Ecology of Premature Autonomy in Adolescence: Biological and Social Influences by Thomas J. Dishion, Francois Poulin, and Nani Medici SkaggsRussian Parenting Styles and Family Processes: Linkages with Subtypes of Victimization and Aggression by Craig H. Hart, David A. Nelson, Clyde C. Robinson, Susanne F. Olsen, Mary Kay McNeilly-Choque, Christin L. Porter, and Trevor R. McKeeLinks between Adult and Peer Relations across Four Developmental Periods by Carollee Howes and Holli TonyanLiving in a Hostile World: Toward an Integrated Model of Family, Peer and Psychological Processes in Aggressive Preschoolers by Lynn Fainsilber KatzExplaining the Link between Parenting Behavior and Children's Peer Competence: A Critical Examination of the "Mediating Process" Hypothesis by Jacuelyn Mize, Gregory Pettit, and Darrell MeeceParental Management of Adolescent Peer Relationships: What Are It's Effects on Friend Selection? by Nina S. MountsFamily-Peer Relationships: The Role of Emotion Regulation, Cognitive Understanding, and Attentional Processes as Mediating Processes by Robin O'Neil and Ross D. ParkeIntimacy in Preadolescence and Adolescence: Issues in Linking Parents and Peers, Theory, Culture, and Findings by Ruth SharabanyFamily and Peer Relationships and the Real World Practitioner: A Commentary by Angela M. Neal-Barnett