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PubMedDate not supplied

Management issues related to effectively implementing a nutrition education program using peer educators.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the influence of administrative aspects of a nutrition education program with peer educators delivering the program. DESIGN: Telephone interviews with peer educators trained to deliver La Cocina Saludable, a nutrition education program for Hispanics. Open- and closed-ended questions. SUBJECTS/SETTINGS: Abuelas (grandmothers) recruited and trained as peer educators for the program. The sample included peer educators no longer teaching (22%), currently teaching (30%), and who never taught after training. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Motives and incentives for becoming peer educators, challenges for peer educators, and reasons peer educators withdrew from the program. STATISTICAL ANALYSES PERFORMED: Descriptive statistics were used to analyze quantitative data from the closed-ended questions. Qualitative analysis was applied to data from open-ended questions. RESULTS: Working with community and learning about nutrition were prime motivators. Recruiting participants and coordination of classes appeared to be major challenges. Personal issues and traveling in a large geographic area were cited as the main reasons for quitting. IMPLICATIONS: The effectiveness of using peer educators for La Cocina Saludable may be improved through empowerment, additional training, a structured and equitable reimbursement system, and assistance to carry out administrative tasks.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Deviancy training and association with deviant peers in young children: ocurrence and contribution to early-onset conduct problems.

The relationships of deviant talk and role taking during peer interaction, association with deviant peers, and growth in overt and covert conduct problems during kindergarten and first grade were examined in a community sample of 267 boys and girls. At entry to kindergarten, high levels of overt and covert conduct problems predicted association with deviant peers, and deviant peer association predicted deviant talk and role taking during peer interaction during kindergarten. Association with deviant peers, and deviant talk and role taking predicted growth in overt and covert conduct problems on the playground, in the classroom, and at home during kindergarten and first grade. Peer processes associated with growth in conduct problems that escalate rapidly during late childhood and adolescence appear to occur in earlier childhood. These peer processes may play a central role in the evolution of conduct problems to include covert as well as overt forms.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Children's peer selection: experimental examination of the role of self-perceptions.

Although previous studies have examined characteristics of children selected as friends, little research has examined the role played by characteristics of the selecting child. In 2 experimental studies that examined the role of self-perceptions in peer selection, participants (91 seventh graders in Study 1 and 83 third graders in Study 2) viewed various evaluations of themselves. Participants either believed evaluations were written by unfamiliar peers (Study 1) or were asked to imagine that the views of puppets were views of unfamiliar peers (Study 2). Participants were asked to select the peers they wished to meet and interact with. When evaluations were related to specific competence domains, 7th graders preferred positive peers to negative peers, whereas 3rd graders selected peers who viewed them as they viewed themselves. When evaluations were related to global self-worth, children's selections were unrelated to views of their own global worth. Selection of a globally negative peer was associated with attachment-insecurity/maternal-rejection and depressive symptoms.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2005

"I'm OK but you're not" and other peer-relational schemas: explaining individual differences in children's social goals.

This study examined the links among 5th and 6th graders' (279 girls and 310 boys) self- and peer perceptions, social goals, and social behavior. Social goals mediated the effects of self- and peer perceptions on 3 types of behavior: proactive aggression, prosocial behavior, and withdrawal. In addition to their main effects (self-perception predicting variance in agentic goals, peer perception being related to communal goals), self- and peer perception interacted in influencing social goals; for instance, the effects of a positive view of oneself were different in the contexts of a positive versus a negative perception of peers. It is suggested that in order to predict children's social behavior more accurately, researchers should investigate children's dual perceptions of themselves and of their peers--that is, their peer-relational schemas--instead of assessing self-perception and peer perception in isolation from each other.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2003

Peer and partner drinking and the transition to marriage: a longitudinal examination of selection and influence processes.

This study examined the longitudinal relationships among adult drinking, partner drinking, and peer drinking over the transition to marriage. Newlywed couples were assessed with respect to alcohol involvement, peer drinking, and risk factors and reassessed at their 1st anniversary. Husbands' premarital drinking was predictive of wives' drinking at the 1st anniversary, indicating partner influence. The results did not support a peer-influence hypothesis in that peer drinking at marriage was not predictive of husbands' or wives' drinking at the 1st anniversary. There was evidence, however, for a peer-selection effect with husbands' premarital drinking predicting peer drinking for both husbands and wives. Wives' premarital drinking was unrelated to the subsequent drinking of their peers or their husbands' peers.

Adult↗

PubMed2004

The effects of verbal support strategies on small-group peer interactions.

PURPOSE: This study investigated whether child care providers could learn to facilitate peer interactions by using verbal support strategies (e.g., prompts, invitations, or suggestions to interact) during naturalistic play activities. METHOD: Seventeen caregivers were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups, stratified by center so that staff from one center could attend the training program together. The experimental group received inservice training on how to facilitate peer interaction; the control group received training on adult-child communication strategies. Caregivers in the experimental group were taught to facilitate children's interactions with their peers by using indirect referrals (e.g., alerting children to situational information, offering praise) and direct referrals (e.g., telling a child what to say to a peer, inviting children to play together). RESULTS: At posttest, the caregivers in the experimental group used more verbal supports for peer interaction than the caregivers in the control group. Specifically, they used more utterances to promote communication between peers and to invite children to interact together. In turn, the children in the experimental group initiated interactions with peers more often and engaged in extended peer sequences more often than the children in the control group. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS: The results support the viability of this training model in early childhood education settings and suggest that future research of its effects with children who have disabilities is warranted.

Adult↗

PubMed1995

Redirects: a strategy to increase peer initiations.

Preschoolers' verbal abilities influence their verbal interactions with play partners. Previous research has suggested that preschoolers with specific language impairment (SLI) are more likely to initiate conversations with adults than with peers, as compared to their typically developing peers. This study investigated a teacher-implemented procedure, redirects, as a means to facilitate initiations to peers. A redirect occurs when a child initiates to the teacher, and the teacher then suggests the child initiate to a peer, thereby redirecting the child from an adult to a peer. Four preschool boys with SLI participated in the study. The teacher training was successful in increasing the teacher's ability to redirect the children's initiations. The children consistently responded to redirects by initiating to peers, and most redirected initiations received conversational responses from peers. Generalization effects to spontaneous peer initiations following the intervention period were demonstrated for 2 of the boys.

Child, Preschool↗

PubMed2003

Peers and adolescent smoking.

There is a considerable body of empirical research that has identified adolescent peer relationships as a primary factor involved in adolescent cigarette smoking. Despite this large research base, many questions remain unanswered about the mechanisms by which peers affect youths' smoking behavior. Understanding these processes of influence is key to the development of prevention and intervention programs designed to address adolescent smoking as a significant public health concern. In this paper, theoretical frameworks and empirical findings are reviewed critically which inform the current state of knowledge regarding peer influences on teenage smoking. Specifically, social learning theory, primary socialization theory, social identity theory and social network theory are discussed. Empirical findings regarding peer influence and selection, as well as multiple reference points in adolescent friendships, including best friendships, romantic relationships, peer groups and social crowds, are also reviewed. Review of this work reveals the contribution that peers have in adolescents' use of tobacco, in some cases promoting use, and in other cases deterring it. This review also suggests that peer influences on smoking are more subtle than commonly thought and need to be examined more carefully, including consideration of larger social contexts, e.g. the family, neighborhood, and media. Recommendations for future investigations are made, as well as suggestions for specific methodological approaches that offer promise for advancing our knowledge of the contribution of peers on adolescent tobacco use.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Involvement with peers: comparisons between young children with and without Down's syndrome.

BACKGROUND: It has been well established that heterogeneous groups of young children with mild intellectual disability are at considerable risk of becoming socially isolated from their peers in school, home and community settings. METHOD: Matched groups of young children with and without Down's syndrome (DS) were compared in terms of the children's involvement with peers, maternal arranging and monitoring of peer play, and maternal beliefs about inclusion. RESULTS: Despite aetiology-specific expectations for children with DS, no differences were found for a variety of measures of peer involvement focusing on the frequency of contacts and the characteristics of children's peer social networks. Maternal arranging of activities with peers was similarly related to peer involvement for both groups of children. Higher ratings of the benefits of inclusion were obtained from mothers of children with DS, but these maternal beliefs were unrelated to maternal arranging or peer involvement. CONCLUSIONS: Parental adaptations to the aetiology-specific behavioural patterns of children and the general influence of children's experiences within a developmental framework are discussed in the context of interpreting aetiology-specific findings.

Child↗

PubMed2006

Peer play interventions to support the social competence of children with autism spectrum disorders.

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) have difficulty connecting with others because they often lack the communication, social interaction, and play skills necessary for developing relationships with their peers. This article highlights the characteristics of four peer intervention programs described in the literature that have been successful in facilitating the social connections between children with ASD and their typical peers. The environments established for intervention, the role of the typical peer, and the role of the adult are described across the four programs. A fifth peer intervention program is introduced that focuses on establishing peer connections in the home of the child with ASD while facilitating bids and responses for behavior regulation, social interaction, and joint attention in the child with ASD and his or her typical peer in the context of play. Implications for practice are provided as clinicians consider the role peer mediation has in intervention planning and implementation for children with ASD.

Autistic Disorder↗

PubMed1999

Communication strategies for dietary change in a worksite peer educator intervention.

At the heart of peer health education programs is the assumption that tapping social networks increases adoption of behavior change, yet the communication strategies used by peer educators have not been previously documented to assess the use of social networks in promotion of health messages. Our program in public worksites trained peer health educators to utilize their social networks along with individual persuasive strategies to promote the 5 a Day for Better Health message (i.e. eat five or more servings of fruits and vegetables every day). Communication strategies utilized by the peer health educators were tracked via monthly focus groups over a 9 month intervention in 40 social networks of labor and trades employees. Audiotapes were transcribed and content analyzed to identify 10 communication strategies used by peer educators. Strategies were rated as enacted in an individual or a group (collective) context. Peer health educators were more likely to implement 'creating context' and 'role modeling' as group context change strategies, and 'encouragement' and 'responding to employee needs' as individual change strategies. Strategies used most frequently by males were 'mock competition', 'giving materials' and 'encouragement', while females used 'creating context' and 'keeping 5 a Day visible' most frequently. Hispanic peer health educators were more likely to use individual change strategies than their non-Hispanic counterparts. Documentation of the creative approaches utilized by lay educators among their peers can inform public health professionals on (1) how to better train outreach workers within various cultural, gender and social contexts, and (2) how to maximize social network effects.

Communication↗

PubMed2001

Brief report: perceptions of young adolescents about a hypothetical new peer with cancer: an analog study.

OBJECTIVE: To assess attitudes and behavioral intentions (desire to engage a peer in academic, social, and general activities) of young adolescents toward a hypothetical new peer with cancer and to assess the relationship between attitudes and empathy. METHODS: Two hundred fifty middle school students viewed videotapes of a hypothetical peer (i.e., actor) with or without cancer. Participants completed a measure of empathy and a measure of social desirability before viewing the videotape. Participants completed a measure of attitudes and a measure of behavioral intentions after viewing the videotape. RESULTS: Participants gave significantly higher ratings of behavioral intention (e.g., were more accepting) to the peer with cancer than to the healthy peer. Also, participants with high empathy reported more favorable impressions toward the hypothetical new peer than did participants with low or moderate empathy. Female participants had more favorable attitudes and behavioral intentions toward the hypothetical new peer than did male participants. CONCLUSIONS: The social perceptions of young adolescents about peers with cancer may be less negative than previously hypothesized.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Longitudinal influence of perceptions of peer and parental factors on African American adolescent risk involvement.

To explore the long-term contributions of perceived peer and parental influences on adolescent risk and protective behaviors (sexual involvement, condom use, and drug use), we assessed self-reported behaviors and perceptions of peer risk involvement and parental supervision and communication among 383 low-income, urban African Americans aged 9 to 15 years at baseline over a 4-year period. Baseline perceptions of peer sexual involvement were significantly associated with youth sexual behavior at baseline and were predictive of sexual involvement through all 4 years of follow-up. Perceived parental monitoring was inversely correlated with sexual involvement through 3 years of follow-up. Perceptions of peer condom use were associated with increased levels of condom use at baseline and through 6 months of follow-up. Positive parental communication was correlated with increased condom use. Drug use was higher among youths who perceived peers or family members to be using drugs and was inversely correlated with increased parental monitoring and supervision. Stepwise regression revealed peer and parental influences for all three behaviors. Perceptions of both peer and parental behaviors influence long-term risk and protective behaviors of adolescents. Therefore, parents should be included in adolescent risk-reduction intervention efforts. Inclusion of friends and/or changing youth perceptions of peer involvement may also be effective intervention strategies.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1994

Comparing peer and faculty evaluations in an internal medicine residency.

PURPOSE: To compare in-training evaluations of residents by their peers with evaluations by faculty preceptors in an internal medicine residency. METHOD: The study group consisted of 22 residents enrolled in the core (three-year) internal medicine program at the University of Calgary in 1989-90 and 1990-91. At the end of each rotation, ratings of the residents were requested from faculty preceptors and from peers for several categories of clinical competence. The peer ratings were paired with faculty ratings, for a total of 74 pairs of ratings. The Wilcoxon matched-pair signed-rank procedure was used to compare the paired ratings. One-way analysis of variance was used to compare the peer and faculty ratings with the residents' scores on three other kinds of evaluation used by the residency. RESULTS: While there was no significant difference between peer and faculty ratings for overall competence or for several components of competence, there were significant differences for some components, with faculty tending to rate higher than peers. The latter components were physical examination, team relationships, industriousness and enthusiasm, teaching, physician-patient relationships, and case presentations. External validation of the ratings by comparing them with other kinds of evaluation yielded little meaningful information. CONCLUSION: That the faculty ratings were significantly higher than the peer ratings for some components of clinical competence suggests that there were differences in the quality of evaluation between the peers and faculty, or differences in the standards or expectations of the two groups.

Clinical Competence↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Developmental pathways from child maltreatment to peer rejection.

Using a prospective longitudinal design, rejection by peers, aggressive behavior, and social withdrawal were examined among a representative community sample of 107 maltreated children and an equal number of non-maltreated children. Results revealed that chronic maltreatment was associated with heightened risk of rejection by peers. Chronically maltreated children were more likely to be rejected by peers repeatedly across multiple years from childhood to early adolescence. Maltreatment chronicity was also associated with higher levels of children's aggressive behavior, as reported by peers, teachers, and children themselves. Aggressive behavior accounted in large part for the association between chronic maltreatment and rejection by peers. Socially withdrawn behavior was associated with peer rejection, but did not account for the association between chronic maltreatment and peer rejection. These results held for both girls and boys, followed from childhood through early adolescence. Moreover, the links among chronic maltreatment, aggressive behavior, and peer rejection were already established by early school age. Implications of these results for developmental theory and intervention are discussed.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Examination of peer-group contextual effects on aggression during early adolescence.

Peer group contextual effects of aggressive behavior among middle school students (6th-8th graders) were examined using a short-term longitudinal design. More specifically, the homophily hypothesis that peer group membership influences individual-level bullying and fighting was evaluated with multilevel sex-specific models of individual- and peer-level aggression scores. Peer groups were identified via social network analysis. Intraclass correlation coefficients yielded through hierarchical linear modeling demonstrated substantial within-group similarity on self-reported bullying and fighting, suggesting that students affiliate with individuals who bully and fight at the same frequency. Peer group bullying and fighting was associated with individual-level behavior, even after controlling individual baseline levels for males and females. However, peer contextual effects explained more variance in individual bullying than individual fighting. This differential impact of peer group membership suggests that future studies consider peer relations across subtypes of aggression.

Adolescent↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Peer relations across contexts: individual-network homophily and network inclusion in and after school.

Peer relations across 2 contexts (in school and after school) were examined for 577 participants, approximately 12 years old, from 3 middle schools in Milan, Italy. The primary research questions were: Do peer networks from different contexts uniquely contribute to explaining variance in individual behavior? Do measures of peer preference and peer network inclusion across contexts uniquely contribute to explaining individual depressive symptoms? Structural equation models showed that both the in-school and the after-school peer networks uniquely contributed to explaining variance in 2 types of individual problem behavior (in-school problem behavior, after-school delinquency), and that similarity with the 2 peer networks varied according to behaviors specific to each context and across gender. Finally, both in-school and after-school peer network inclusion contributed to explaining variance in depressive symptoms, after controlling for classroom peer preference.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1987

Infants' interactions with mother, sibling, and peer: contrasts and relations between interaction systems.

The role of the mother in structuring interactions with the infant during free play was examined at 6 and 9 months. Maternal scaffolding of turn-taking exchanges was then contrasted to the forms of turn-taking apparent in sibling-infant and peer-infant observations. Infants spent more time in turn-taking exchanges with their mothers than with their siblings or peers. These exchanges most often took the form of mothers creating sequences by responding to infants' social and nonsocial acts and by eliciting social and nonsocial responses from the infants. Infants' exchanges with older siblings were briefer and more typically involved the older children eliciting nonsocial responses from the infants but not responding contingently to the infants' interests and actions. Infant peers spent less time in turn-taking exchanges, and their interactions showed less evidence of scaffolding. At the same time, the proportion of strictly social interactions was greatest with peers. Relations were apparent between infants' turn-taking experiences with their mothers and the infants' subsequent interactions with their siblings and with their peers. Relations were also found between infants' interaction experiences with their older siblings and subsequent peer interaction. Those infants with more extensive turn-taking experience with more skilled social partners were subsequently observed to engage in more extensive turn-taking interactions with a peer. These results are discussed in terms of studies on mother-infant attachment and peer competence, maternal scaffolding, and Vygotsky's zone of proximal development.

Child Development↗