Effects of friendship and gender on peer group entry.
Effects of hosts' conflicting motives (to win a game vs. to be a good friend) on peer group entry processes and outcomes were examined. Subjects were 68 triads (35 female) of 10-12-year-old predominantly White children. Two host friends played a game for a large prize that was forfeited for a smaller prize if the guest (a friend or nonfriend of both hosts) was included. Hosts admitted guest friends more often than nonfriends (44% vs. 26%), suggesting that friendship norms prescribe self-sacrifice. Hosts behaved similarly with guest friends and nonfriends, but guest friends were more active than nonfriends, reflecting freedom derived from friendship security. Female hosts admitted guests more often than male hosts (51% vs. 21%), consistent with communal and agentic gender role prescriptions for girls and boys, respectively. Results suggest that hosts' friendship obligations and psychological orientation affect their response to a newcomer in a group entry situation.
Zarbatany
L
L
Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada.
Van Brunschot
M
M
Meadows
K
K
Pepper
S
S
D002648:Child; D003163:Competitive Behavior; D005260:Female; D005783:Gender Identity; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D010379:Peer Group; D012931:Social Environment; D012933:Social Identification; D012951:Socialization; D012963:Sociometric Techniques