PEER RELATIONSHIPS IN CHILDHOOD

An early view of the development of adaptive and maladaptive behaviors during childhood and adolescence suggested that such outcomes stemmed largely from the quality of the child’s relationship with his or her parents and from the types of socialization practices that the parents engaged in. This primary focus on the developmental significance of the parent-child relationship and of parenting practices was proposed early by Freud (1933) in his theory of psychosexual development, by Sears, Maccoby, and Levin (1957) in their seminal research on the significance of discipline variability and social learning, and by Bowlby (1958) in his influential writings on the long-term developmental importance of the mother-infant attachment relationship. Without denying the veracity of these claims, it is nevertheless the case that adjustment and maladjustment in childhood stem from a wide variety of sources including genetic and biological underpinnings and social influences other than parents. For example, children and adolescents spend enormous amounts of time, both in and out of home, relating to and interacting with many other people of potential influence. These significant others include their siblings, teachers or out-of-home caregivers, and peers. Children’s peers are the focus of the present chapter.