Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Peer Status and Aggression as Predictors of Dating Popularity in Adolescence

  • Empirical Research
  • Published:
Journal of Youth and Adolescence Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Research has identified links between dating and aversive behavior such as aggression and bullying in adolescence, highlighting the need for studies that further our understanding of romantic relationships and their dynamics during this period. This study tested the associations between dating popularity and overt and relational aggression, social preference, and peer popularity. Of particular interest were the moderating roles of social preference and peer popularity in the association of aggression with dating popularity. Further moderation by gender was also explored. Participants were 478 ninth-graders (48 % girls) with peer nomination scores for peer status, aggression, and dating popularity. Dating popularity was positively correlated with popularity, social preference, and overt and relational aggression. Regression models indicated that popular, overtly aggressive girls were seen as desirable dating partners by their male peers. Relational aggression was associated with dating popularity for both boys and girls, especially for youths who were well-liked by peers. These findings are interpreted in light of developmental–contextual perspectives on adolescent romantic relationships and Resource Control Theory.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Aiken, L. S., & West, S. G. (1991). Multiple regression: Testing and interpreting interactions. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Arnocky, S., Sunderani, S., Miller, J. L., & Vaillancourt, T. (2012). Jealousy mediates the relationship between attractiveness comparison and females’ indirect aggression. Personal Relationships, 19(2), 290–303.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arnocky, S., & Vaillancourt, T. (2012). A multi-informant longitudinal study on the relationship between aggression, peer victimization, and dating status in adolescence. Evolutionary Psychology, 10(2), 253–270.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Borch, C., Hyde, A., & Cillessen, A. N. (2011). The role of attractiveness and aggression in high school popularity. Social Psychology of Education, 14(1), 23–39. doi:10.1007/s11218-010-9131-1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Brown, B. (1999). ‘You’re going out with who?’: Peer group influences on adolescent romantic relationships. In W. Furman, B. Brown, & C. Feiring (Eds.), The development of romantic relationships in adolescence (pp. 291–329). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Carlson, W., & Rose, A. J. (2007). The role of reciprocity in romantic relationships in middle childhood and early adolescence. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 53(2), 262–290. doi:10.1353/mpq.2007.0008.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Carver, K., Joyner, K., & Udry, J. R. (2003). National estimates of adolescent romantic relationships. In P. Florsheim (Ed.), Adolescent romantic relations and sexual behavior: Theory, research, and practical implications. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cillessen, A. H. N., & Mayeux, L. (2004). From censure to reinforcement: Developmental changes in the association between aggression and social status. Child Development, 75(1), 147–163.

  • Cillessen, A. N., & Rose, A. J. (2005). Understanding popularity in the peer system. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 14(2), 102–105. doi:10.1111/j.0963-7214.2005.00343.x.

  • Collins, W. (2003). More than myth: The developmental significance of romantic relationships during adolescence. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 13(1), 1–24. doi:10.1111/1532-7795.1301001.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Connolly, J., Craig, W., Goldberg, A., & Pepler, D. (1999). Conceptions of cross-sex friendships and romantic relationships in early adolescence. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 28, 481–494.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Connolly, J., Furman, W., & Konarski, R. (2000a). The role of peers in the emergence of heterosexual romantic relationships in adolescence. Child Development, 71(5), 1395–1408. doi:10.1111/1467-8624.00235.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Connolly, J., Pepler, D., Craig, W., & Taradash, A. (2000b). Dating experiences of bullies in early adolescence. Child Maltreatment, 5(4), 299–310. doi:10.1177/1077559500005004002.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Crick, N. R. (1995). Relational aggression: The role of intent attributions, feelings of distress, and provocation type. Development and Psychopathology, 7(2), 313–322. doi:10.1017/S0954579400006520.

  • Darwin, C. (1871). The Descent of Man, and Selection Related to Sex. London: John Murray. doi:10.1037/12293-008.

  • de Bruyn, E. H., & Cillessen, A. N. (2006). Popularity in early adolescence: Prosocial and antisocial subtypes. Journal of Adolescent Research, 21(6), 607–627. doi:10.1177/0743558406293966.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dijkstra, J., Cillessen, A. N., Lindenberg, S., & Veenstra, R. (2010). Same-gender and cross-gender likeability: Associations with popularity and status enhancement: The TRAILS study. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 30(6), 773–802. doi:10.1177/0272431609350926.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dodge, K. A., Coie, J. D., & Lynam, D. (2006). Aggression and antisocial behavior in youth. In N. Eisenberg, W. Damon & R. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of child psychology, volume 3: Social, emotional, and personality development (6th Ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley and Sons.

  • Espelage, D. L., Basile, K. C., & Hamburger, M. E. (2012). Bullying perpetration and subsequent sexual violence perpetration among middle school students. Journal of Adolescent Health, 50(1), 60–65.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fisher, M., & Cox, A. (2009). The influence of female attractiveness on competitor derogation. Journal of Evolutionary Psychology, 7(2), 141–155. doi:10.1556/JEP.7.2009.2.3.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Foshee, V., & Matthew, R. (2007). Adolescent dating abuse perpetration: A review of findings, methodological limitations, and suggestions for future research. In D. Flannery, A. Vazsonyi & I. Waldman, (Eds.), The Cambridge handbook of violent behavior and aggression (pp. 431–449). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press.

  • Franzoi, S. L., Davis, M. H., & Vasquez-Suson, K. A. (1994). Two social worlds: Social correlates and stability of adolescent status groups. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 67(3), 462–473. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.67.3.462.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Furman, W., & Buhrmester, D. (1992). Age and sex differences in perceptions of networks of personal relationships. Child Development, 63(1), 103–115. doi:10.2307/1130905.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gallup, A. C., O’Brien, D. T., & Wilson, D. (2011). Intrasexual peer aggression and dating behavior during adolescence: An evolutionary perspective. Aggressive Behavior, 37(3), 258–267. doi:10.1002/ab.20384.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ha, T., Overbeek, G., & Engels, R. E. (2010). Effects of attractiveness and social status on dating desire in heterosexual adolescents: An experimental study. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 39(5), 1063–1071. doi:10.1007/s10508-009-9561-z.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hawley, P. H. (1999). The ontogenesis of social dominance: A strategy-based evolutionary perspective. Developmental Review, 19(1), 97–132. doi:10.1006/drev.1998.0470.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hawley, P. H. (2003). Prosocial and coercive configurations of resource control in early adolescence: A case for the well-adapted Machiavellian. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 49(3), 279–309. doi:10.1353/mpq.2003.0013.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Košir, K., & Pečjak, S. (2005). Sociometry as a method for investigating peer relationships: What does it actually measure? Educational Research, 47(1), 127–144. doi:10.1080/0013188042000337604.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krantz, M. (1987). Physical attractiveness and popularity: A predictive study. Psychological Reports, 60(3), 723–726. doi:10.2466/pr0.1987.60.3.723.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krantz, M., Friedberg, J., & Andrews, D. (1985). Physical attractiveness and popularity: The mediating role of self-perception. Journal of Psychology: Interdisciplinary and Applied, 119(3), 219–223.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • LaFontana, K. M., & Cillessen, A. N. (2010). Developmental changes in the priority of perceived status in childhood and adolescence. Social Development, 19(1), 130–147. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9507.2008.00522.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laursen, B., & Williams, V. A. (1997). Perceptions of interdependence and closeness in family and peer relationships among adolescents with and without romantic partners. In S. Shulman & W. Collins (Eds.), Romantic relationships in adolescence: Developmental perspectives (pp. 3–20). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Leenaars, L. S., Dane, A. V., & Marini, Z. A. (2008). Evolutionary perspective on indirect victimization in adolescence: The role of attractiveness, dating and sexual behavior. Aggressive Behavior, 34(4), 404–415. doi:10.1002/ab.20252.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Marks, P. L., Babcock, B., Cillessen, A. N., & Crick, N. R. (2013). The effects of participation rate on the internal reliability of peer nomination measures. Social Development, 22(3), 609–622. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9507.2012.00661.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marks, P. L., Cillessen, A. N., & Crick, N. R. (2012). Popularity contagion among adolescents. Social Development, 21(3), 501–521. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9507.2011.00647.x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mayeux, L. (2011). Effects of popularity and gender on peers’ perceptions of prosocial, antisocial, and jealousy-eliciting behaviors. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 57(4), 349–374. doi:10.1353/mpq.2011.0020.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mayeux, L., Houser, J. J., & Dyches, K. D. (2011). Social acceptance and popularity: Two distinct forms of peer status. In A. N. Cillessen, D. Schwartz, & L. Mayeux (Eds.), Popularity in the peer system (pp. 79–102). New York, NY: Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • McNaughton Reyes, H. L., & Foshee, V. A. (2013). Sexual dating aggression across grades 8 through 12: Timing and predictors of onset. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 42, 581–595. doi:10.1007/s10964-012-9864-6.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Miller, S., Lansford, J. E., Costanzo, P., Malone, P. S., Golonka, M., & Killeya-Jones, L. A. (2009). Early adolescent romantic partner status, peer standing, and problem behaviors. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 29(6), 839–861. doi:10.1177/0272431609332665.

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • O’Leary, K. D., Smith Slep, A. M., Avery-Leaf, S., & Cascardi, M. (2008). Gender differences in dating aggression among multiethnic high school students. Journal of Adolescent Health, 42(5), 473–479. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2007.09.012.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ozer, E. J., Tschann, J. M., Pasch, L. A., & Flores, E. (2004). Violence perpetration across peer and partner relationships: Co-occurrence and longitudinal patterns among adolescents. Journal of Adolescent Health, 34(1), 64–71. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2002.12.001.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Parkhurst, J. T., & Hopmeyer, A. (1998). Sociometric popularity and peer-perceived popularity: Two distinct dimensions of peer status. The Journal of Early Adolescence, 18(2), 125–144. doi:10.1177/0272431698018002001.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pellegrini, A. D., & Bartini, M. (2001). Dominance in early adolescent boys: Affiliative and aggressive dimensions and possible functions. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 47(1), 142–163. doi:10.1353/mpq.2001.0004.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pelligrini, A. D., & Long, J. D. (2003). A sexual selection theory longitudinal analysis of sexual segregation and integration in early adolescence. Journal of Experimental Child Psychology, 85(3), 257–278. doi:10.1016/S0022-0965(03)00060-2.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Puckett, M. B., Aikins, J. W., & Cillessen, A. H. N. (2008). Moderators of the association between perceived popularity and relational aggression. Aggressive Behavior, 34(6), 563–576.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Regan, P., & Joshi, A. (2003). Ideal partner preferences among adolescents. Social Behavior and Personality, 31(6), 13–20. doi:10.2224/sbp.2003.31.1.13.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rodkin, P. C., Farmer, T. W., Pearl, R., & Van Acker, R. (2000). Heterogeneity of popular boys: Antisocial and prosocial configurations. Developmental Psychology, 36(1), 14–24. doi:10.1037/0012-1649.36.1.14.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Roisman, G. I., Booth-LaForce, C., Cauffman, E., & Spieker, S. (2009). The developmental significance of adolescent romantic relationships: Parent and peer predictors of engagement and quality at age 15. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 38(10), 1294–1303. doi:10.1007/s10964-008-9378-4.

  • Rubin, K. H., Bukowski, W. M., & Parker, J. G. (2006). Peer interactions, relationships, and groups. In N. Eisenberg, W. Damon, & R. M. Lerner (Eds.), Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 3, social, emotional, and personality development (6th ed., pp. 571–645). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Terry, R. (2000). Recent advances in measurement theory and the use of sociometric techniques. In A. N. Cillessen & W. M. Bukowski (Eds.), Recent advances in the measurement of acceptance and rejection in the peer system (pp. 27–53). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Underwood, M. K. (2003). Social aggression among girls. New York, NY: Guilford Press.

  • Vaillancourt, T., & Hymel, S. (2006). Aggression and social status: The moderating roles of sex and peer-valued characteristics. Aggressive Behavior, 32(4), 396–408. doi:10.1002/ab.20138.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vaillancourt, T. (2005). Indirect aggression among humans: Social construct or evolutionary adaptation? In R. E. Tremblay, W. W. Hartup & J. Archer (Eds.), Developmental origins of aggression (pp. 158–177). New York, NY US: Guilford Press.

  • Weber, M., & Ruch, W. (2012). The role of character strengths in adolescent romantic relationships: An initial study on partner selection and mates’ life satisfaction. Journal of Adolescence, 35(6), 1537–1546. doi:10.1016/j.adolescence.2012.06.002.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Zimmer-Gembeck, M. J., & Helfand, M. (2008). Ten years of longitudinal research on U.S. adolescent sexual behavior: Developmental correlates of sexual intercourse, and the importance of age, gender, and ethnic background. Developmental Review, 28, 153–224. doi:10.1016/j.dr.2007.06.001.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zimmer-Gembeck, M. J., Seibenbruner, J., & Collins, W. A. (2004). A prospective study on the intraindividual and peer influences on adolescent heterosexual romantic and sexual behavior. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 33(4), 381–394.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Karmon D. Dyches and a talented team of undergraduate research assistants for their contributions to the project, and the faculty, staff, and students of Yukon High School in Yukon, OK, for their participation.

Author contributions

J.H. participated in the design and implementation of the study, analyzed the data, and drafted portions of the manuscript; L.M. participated in the design and implementation of the study and drafted portions of the manuscript, and C.C. participated in the implementation of the study and drafted portions of the manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, USA

    John J. Houser

  2. Department of Psychology, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA

    Lara Mayeux & Cassandra Cross

Authors
  1. John J. Houser
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Lara Mayeux
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Cassandra Cross
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Lara Mayeux.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Houser, J.J., Mayeux, L. & Cross, C. Peer Status and Aggression as Predictors of Dating Popularity in Adolescence. J Youth Adolescence 44, 683–695 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-014-0174-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-014-0174-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation