FRIENDS INFLUENCE ON ADOLESCENTS ADJUSTMENT TO SCHOOL

Adolescents may be influenced both by their friends' behaviors and by the features of their friendships. To examine both types of influence, seventh and eighth graders (N = 297) were asked in the fall of a scho ol year to report their involvement and disruption at school. The stud ents also described the positive and negative features of their best f riendships. Teachers reported on the students' involvement, disruption , and grades. These assessments were repeated in the following spring. Students whose friends in the fall described themselves as more disru ptive increased in self-reported disruption during the year. Girls' se lf-reported disruption was more influenced by that of their very best friend than was boys'. Students whose very best friendships had more p ositive features increased in their self-reported involvement during t he year. Students whose friendships had more negative features increas ed in their self-reported disruption, but only if their friendships al so had many positive features. The theoretical and practical implicati ons of these findings, and the adequacy of different methods for estim ating friends' influence, were discussed.