Friendship group identification, multidimensional self-concept, and experience of developmental tasks in adolescence.
This study applied a social identity perspective to the study of adolescent self-concept and social development. British adolescents aged 14-15 years (N=114) completed a questionnaire which asked them to: (i) rate their degree of identification with a school-based friendship group; (ii) complete a measure of multi-dimensional self-concept; and (iii) report their experiences of a variety of personal, relational and socio-institutional (e.g., achieving economic independence) developmental tasks. Compared to low identifiers, participants who were highly identified with a friendship group reported highest levels of self-esteem; and these differences were most marked in non-academic domains of self. High identifiers also displayed higher levels of general self-esteem and reported more positive experiences of personal and relational developmental tasks. The discussion focuses on the potential benefits to understanding of social developmental processes that can be derived from a consideration of adolescents' subjective appraisals of their peer relations.
Tarrant
Mark
M
School of Psychology, Keele University, Staffordshire ST5 5BG, UK. m.tarrant@keele.ac.uk
MacKenzie
Liam
L
Hewitt
Lisa A
LA
D000293:Adolescent; D041923:Adolescent Development; D005260:Female; D033062:Friends; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D012649:Self Concept; D012737:Sex Factors; D012922:Social Change; D012933:Social Identification; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires