DEVELOPMENTAL PATTERNS AND GENDER DIFFERENCES IN THE EXPERIENCE OF PEER COMPANIONSHIP DURING ADOLESCENCE

Adolescents in fifth through eighth grade (N = 218) carried electronic pagers for 1 week and completed self-report forms in response to sign als received at random times. Four years later, the sample underwent t he same procedure. Results indicate that thinking about the opposite s ex occurs at an earlier age than spending time with the opposite sex a lone and that both increase over time. Results also indicate little ch ange in same-sex companionship over time. Girls spent more time with t he opposite sex and spent more time thinking about opposite-and same-s ex peers. Time with the opposite sex alone was experienced as very pos itive, whereas time spent thinking about the opposite sex was associat ed with less positive states as adolescents became older.