This investigation was designed to further an understanding of the differences between popular and rejected adolescent males with regard to the domains of social skills, self-control, anger, problem behaviors, and academic performance. For a multi-state sample (N = 191) of adolescents, it was demonstrated that teacher and self-ratings of social skills and self-control meaningfully discriminated popular from rejected males. Ratings of anger, problem behaviors, and academic performance did not contribute to the differentiation of the two groups via a stepwise discriminant function analysis. This investigation extended established behavioral correlates of social competency findings to older adolescents and employed several new (Social Skills Rating System) or infrequently used (Self-Control Rating Scale and Children's Inventory of Anger) behavior rating scales to operationalize social or social-cognitive behaviors hypothesized to be important to the development of social competency.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Asher, S. R., & Hymel, S. (1981). Children's social competence in peer relations: Sociometric and behavioral assessment. In J. D. Wine & M. A. Syme (Eds.), Social competence (pp. 125-157). New York: Guilford Press.
2.
Black, F. (1985). Social skills assessment for mainstreamed handicapped students. The discriminative efficiency of the Teacher Ratings of Social Skills. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Louisiana State University.
3.
Byrne, B. M., & Schneider, B. H. (1986). Student-teacher concordance on dimensions of student social competence: A multitrait-multimethod analysis. Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 8, 263-279.
4.
Bryan, T. H. (1976). Peer popularity of learning disabled children: A replication. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 9, 307-311.
5.
Clark, L., Gresham, F. M., & Elliott, S. N. (1985). Development and validation of a social skills assessment procedure: The TROSS-C. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 4, 347-356.
6.
Coie, J. D., & Dodge, K. A. (1983). Continuity of children's social status: A five-year longitudinal study. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 29, 261-282.
7.
Coie, J. D., Dodge, K. A., & Coppotelli, H. (1982). Dimensions and types of social status: A cross-age perspective. Developmental Psychology, 18, 557-570.
8.
Coie, J. D., & Krehbiel, G. (1984). Effects of academic tutoring on the social status of low-achieving, socially rejected children. Child Development, 55, 1465-1478.
9.
Coie, J. D., & Kupersmidt, J. (1983). A behavioral analysis of emerging social status in boys' groups. Child Development, 54, 1400-1416.
10.
Dodge, K. A. (1983). Behavioral antecedents of peer social status. Child Development, 54, 1386-1399.
11.
Dodge, K. A., Schlundt, D. G., Schocken, I., & Delugach, J. D. (1983). Social competence and children's sociometric status: The role of peer group entry strategies. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 29, 309-336.
12.
Edelbrock, C. (1983). Problems and issues in using rating scales to assess child personality and psychopathology. School Psychology Review, 12, 293-299.
13.
Elliott, S. N., Argulewicz, E. N., & Gresham, F. M. (1986). Reliability and validity of the Social Skills Rating Scale-student version. Unpublished manuscript, Louisiana State University.
14.
Elliott, S. N., Barnard, J., & Gresham, F. M. (1989). Preschoolers' social behavior: Teachers' and parents' assessments. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 1, 223-234.
15.
Elliott, S. N., Gresham, F. M., Freeman, T., & McCloskey, G. (1988). Teachers' and observers' ratings of children's social skills: Validation of the Social Skills Rating Scale. Journal of Psychoeducational Assessment, 6, 152-161.
16.
Finch, A. J., Jr., & Eastman, E. S. (1983). A multimethod approach to measure anger in children. Journal of Psychology, 115, 55-60.
17.
Finch, A. J., Saylor, C. F., & Nelson, W. M. III (1983). The children's inventory of anger. A self-report measure. Unpublished manuscript, Medical University of South Carolina.
18.
Frentz, C., Gresham, F. M., & Elliott, S. N. (1988). Behavioral correlates of popular, controversial, neglected, and rejected adolescents. Manuscript in preparation.
19.
Green, K. D., Forehand, R., Beck, J., & Vosk, B. (1980). An assessment of the relationship among measures of children's social competence and children's academic achievement. Child Development, 51, 1149-1156.
20.
Gresham, F. M. (1981). Assessment of children's social skills. Journal of School Psychology, 19, 120-133.
21.
Gresham, F. M., & Elliott, S. N. (1987). The relationship between adaptive behavior and social skills: Definitional and assessment issues. Journal of Special Education, 21, 167-182.
22.
Gresham, F. M., & Elliott, S. N. (in press). Social Skills Rating System. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service.
23.
Gresham, F. M., Elliott, S.N., & Black, F. L. (1987a). Factor structure replication and bias investigation of the Teacher Rating of Social Skills. Journal of School Psychology, 25, 81-92.
24.
Gresham, F. M., Elliott, S. N., & Black, F. L. (1987b). Social skills comparisons across diagnostic subgroups of children. School Psychology Review, 16, 78-88.
25.
Gresham, F. M., & Reschly, D. J. (1988). Issues in the conceptualization, classification, and assessment of social skills in the mildly handicapped. In T. R. Kratochwill (Ed.), Advances in social psychology (Vol. 6, pp. 203-248). New York: Lawrence Erlbaum.
26.
Gresham, F. M., Reschly, D. J., & Carey, M. P. (1987). Teachers as “tests”: Classification accuracy and concurrent validation in the identification of learning disabled children. School Psychology Review, 16, 543-553.
27.
Hoge, R. D. (1983). Psychometric properties of teacher judgment measures of pupil aptitudes, classroom behaviors, and achievement levels. Journal of Special Education, 17, 401-429.
28.
Hymel, S., & Rubin, K. H. (1985). Children with peer relationships and social skills problems: Conceptual, methodological, and development issues. In G. J. Whitehurst (Ed.), Annals of child development (Vol. 2). Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
29.
Kendall, P. C., & Wilcox, L. W. (1979). Self-control in children: Development of a rating-scale. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 47, 1020-1029.
30.
Kendall, P. C., Zupan, B. A., & Braswell, L. (1981). Self-control in children: Further analyses of the Self-Control Rating Scale. Behavior Therapy, 12, 667-681.
31.
King, C. A., & Young, R. D. (1981). Peer popularity and peer communication patterns: Hyperactive versus active but normal boys. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 9, 465-482.
32.
Ladd, G. W. (1981). Effectiveness of a social learning method for enhancing children's social interactions and peer acceptance. Child Development, 52, 171-178.
33.
Ladd, G. W., & Asher, S. R. (1985). Social skills training and children's peer relations. In L. L'Abate & M. Milan (Eds.), Handbook of social skills training and research (pp. 219-244). New York: John Wiley.
34.
McConnell, S. R., & Odom, S. L. (1986). Sociometric: Peer-referenced measures and the assessment of social competence. In P. S. Strain, M. J. Gualnick, & H. M. Walker (Eds.), Children's social behavior (pp. 215-287). Orlando, FL: Academic Press.
35.
Nelson, W. M. III, & Finch, A. J., Jr. (1978). The Children's Inventory of Anger. Unpublished manuscript, Xavier University.
36.
Parker, J. G., & Asher, S. R. (1987). Peer relations and later personal adjustment: Are low-accepted children at risk?Psychological Bulletin, 102, 357-389.
37.
Puttalaz, M. (1983). Predicting children's sociometric status from their behavior. Child Development, 54, 1417-1426.
38.
Quay, H. C., & Peterson, D. R. (1983). Manual for the Problem Checklist. Unpublished manuscript available from H. C. Quay, Box 248704, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL 33124.
39.
Rubin, K. H. (1982). Social and social-cognitive developmental characteristics of children. In K. H. Rubin & H. S. Ross (Eds.), Peer relationships and social skills in childhood. New York: Springer-Verlag.
40.
Rubin, K. H., & Daniels-Beirness, T. (1983). Concurrent and predictive correlates of sociometric status in kindergarten and grade 1 children. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 29, 337-351.
41.
Shapiro, E. S., Lentz, F. E., & Sofman, R. (1985). Validity of rating scales in assessing aggressive behavior in classroom settings. Journal of School Psychology, 23, 69-79.
42.
Stephens, T. M. (1979). Social behavior assessment. Columbus, OH: Cedars Press.
43.
Stinnett, T. A., Oehler-Stinnett, J., & Stout, L. J. (in press). Ability of the Social Skills Rating System-Teacher Version to discriminate behavior disordered, emotionally disturbed and non-handicapped students. School Psychology Review.
44.
Stumme, V. S., Gresham, F. M., & Scott, N. A. (1982). Validity of Social Behavior Assessment in discriminating emotionally disabled from handicapped students. Journal of Behavioral Assessment, 4, 327-342.
45.
Stumme, V. A., Gresham, F. M., & Scott, N. A. (1983). Dimensions of children's classroom social behavior: A factor analytic investigation. Journal of Behavioral Assessment, 5, 161-177.
46.
Walker, H. M., & McConnell, S. R. (1988). Walker-McConnell Scale of Social Competence and School Adjustment. Austin, TX: PRO-ED.
47.
Wilson, M. J., & Bullock, L. M. (1989). Psychometric characteristics of behavior rating scales: Definitions, problems, and solutions. Behavioral Disorders, 14, 186-200.
