Friendships and adaptation across the life span

Friends foster self-esteem and a sense of well-being, socialize one another , and support one another in coping with developmental transitions and life stress. Friends engage in different activities with one another across the life span, but friendship is conceived similarly by children and adults. F riends and friendships, however, are not all alike. The developmental signi ficance of having friends depends on the characteristics of the friends, es pecially whether the friends are antisocial or socially withdrawn. Outcomes also depend on whether friendships are supportive and intimae or fractious and unstable. Among both children and adults, friendships have clear-cut d evelopmental benefits at times but ar mixed blessings at other times.