Peer relationships and social competence during early and middle childhood

This review demarcates major periods of empirical activity and accomplishme nt (i.e. "generations") in research on children's peer relations and social competence during recent decades and identifies the investigative agendas that were dominant or ascendant during these periods. A sampling of studies that were conducted during the most recent generation of peer relations re search is organized and reviewed in relation to two types of research objec tives: (a) enduring agendas-aims from past research generations that have c ontinued to serve as an impetus for empirical investigation during the 1990 s-and (b) innovative agendas-newly emergent objectives that are predicated on novel conceptual issues or ongoing research controversies and deficienci es. This profile of continuity and change in investigators' research agenda s provides a platform for delineating and analyzing recent empirical accomp lishments in the field of peer relations research.