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This study examined the relations between multiple types of peer victimization, affective reactivity to victimization, and academic achievement. Participants (179 fifth-grade boys and girls) completed repeated daily measures of peer victimization and negative affect; a standardized measure of achievement was collected concurrently. The daily measure of peer victimization was best represented by five factors: physical victimization, verbal victimization, social manipulation, property attacks, and social rebuff. While controlling for race/ethnicity, children’s reports of being socially manipulated by peers were negatively related to their overall achievement. In addition, affective reactivity to social manipulation negatively related to achievement while accounting for reported experiences of social manipulation. No other victimization or reactivity variables related to achievement. Findings are discussed with a focus on implications for school bullying prevention and intervention.

Data were collected about 95 fourth-grade and fifth-grade children from three sources (teachers, parents, and children) on four constructs related to aggression (proactive aggression, reactive aggression, callous–unemotional traits, and anger dysregulation) by using a multitrait–multimethod design. Two goals were addressed through a correlated-trait–correlated-method analysis: (a) Investigate the overlap versus distinctiveness of proactive aggression, reactive aggression, callous–unemotional traits, and anger dysregulation by examining the correlations among their trait factors. (b) Investigate the extent to which the informant who assessed children's aggression was associated with the rating given. Moderate-to-strong trait factor correlations emerged among all pairs of latent trait factors, suggesting at best modest discriminant validity among the constructs. The informant played a significant role for almost all ratings; however, teachers' ratings were the most strongly linked to method variance, and children's ratings provided the most convergent validity with other sources. Findings are discussed in terms of enhanced assessment of childhood aggression.

The current study investigated in-the-moment links between adolescents’ autonomic nervous system activity and susceptibility to three types of peer influence (indirect, direct, continuing) on two types of behavior (antisocial, prosocial). The sample included 144 racially ethnically diverse adolescents (46% male, 53% female, 1% other; M age  = 16.02 years). We assessed susceptibility to peer influence behaviorally using the Public Goods Game (PGG) while measuring adolescents’ mean heart rate (MHR) and pre-ejection period (PEP). Three key findings emerged from bivariate dual latent change score modeling: (1) adolescents whose MHR increased more as they transitioned from playing the PGG alone (pre-influence) to playing while simply observed by peers (indirect influence) displayed more prosocial behavior; (2) adolescents whose PEP activity increased more (greater PEP activity = shorter PEP latency) as they transitioned from indirect influence to being encouraged by peers to engage in antisocial behavior (direct influence) engaged in more antisocial behavior; and (3) adolescents whose PEP activity decreased less as they transitioned from direct influence on prosocial behavior to playing the PGG alone again (continuing influence) displayed more continuing prosocial behavior (marginal effect). The discussion focuses on the role of psychophysiology in understanding adolescents’ susceptibility to peer influence.

Study goals were to explore whether children clustered into groups based on reactions to witnessing bullying and to examine whether these reactions predicted bullying intervention. Seventy-nine children (M = 10.80 years) watched bullying videos in the laboratory while their heart rate (HR) was measured, and they self-reported on negative emotion after each video. Bullying intervention was assessed by school peers. Two groups emerged based on reactions to the bullying videos: The Emotional group (43% of children) displayed HR acceleration and reported high negative emotion, whereas the Unemotional group (57% of children) showed HR deceleration and reported low negative emotion. Group membership predicted bullying intervention, with peers reporting that Emotional children were more likely to stop a bully than Unemotional children.

This study examined infant attachment as a predictor of social information processing (SIP) in middle childhood (n = 82) while controlling for parental sensitivity in middle childhood. Attachment quality was assessed using the Strange Situation. Although attachment insecurity did not predict SIP, attachment disorganization positively predicted the early SIP steps of hostile attributional bias and aggressive goals. Children with disorganized attachments interpreted ambiguous provocations more negatively (as indicating more hostility, rejection, and disrespect and as resulting in more anger) and endorsed significantly more revenge and dominance goals than children with organized attachments. In contrast, parental sensitivity negatively predicted the later SIP step of positive expectations for aggressive responses. Results further our understanding of the adverse outcomes associated with attachment disorganization.

Introduction HIV self‐testing (HIVST) increases HIV testing uptake among men; however, the linkage to antiretroviral therapy (ART) among HIVST users is low. Innovative strategies for ART initiation are needed, yet little is known about the unique barriers to care experienced by male HIVST users, and what ART‐related interventions men desire. Methods We conducted semi‐structured in‐depth interviews with cisgender men (≥15 years) in Malawi who tested HIV positive using HIVST between 2018 and 2020, as well as interviews with their female partners (≥15 years) who distributed the HIVST kits. Medical records from seven facilities were used to identify respondents. We included men who received HIVST from a health facility (primary distribution) and from sexual partners (secondary distribution). Interview guides focused on unique barriers to ART initiation following HIVST and desired interventions to improve linkage and initiation. Interviews were audio recorded, translated and transcribed to English, and analysed using constant comparison methods in Atlas.ti v.8.4. Themes were compared by HIVST distribution strategy. Data were collected between 2019 and 2020. Results Twenty‐seven respondents were interviewed: eight male/female dyads (16 respondents), eight men without a female partner and three women who represented men who did not participate in the study. Among the 19 men represented (16 men interviewed in person, three represented by secondary report from female partners), seven received HIVST through primary distribution, 12 through secondary distribution. Six men never initiated ART (all secondary HIVST distribution). Barriers to ART initiation centred on the absence of healthcare workers at the time of diagnosis and included lack of external motivation for linkage to care (men had to motivate themselves) and lack of counselling before and after testing (leaving ART‐related fears and misconceptions unaddressed)––the latter was especially true for secondary HIVST distribution. Desired interventions were similar across distribution strategies and included ongoing peer mentorship for normalizing treatment adherence, counselling messages tailored to men, outside‐facility services for convenience and privacy, and facility navigation to help men understand how to navigate ART clinics. Conclusions Male HIVST users face unique challenges to ART initiation, especially those receiving HIVST through secondary distribution. Male‐tailored interventions are desired by men and may help overcome barriers to care.

The goal of the current longitudinal study was to investigate the role of adolescents’ peer victimization and aggression prior to COVID-19 on the change in their depressive and anxious symptoms from pre- to mid-pandemic. We hypothesized that, although adolescents overall would display an increase in internalizing symptoms from pre- to mid-pandemic, this response would be weakened or perhaps even reversed when adolescents experienced high levels of victimization or aggression prior to the pandemic. Participants included 96 racially/ethnically diverse adolescents (42 males, 53 females; 1 other) with an average age of 16.79 years (SD = 0.60). At Time 1 (T1; June 2019 through February 2020; pre-pandemic), adolescents completed self-report measures of their peer relations (aggression, victimization) and internalizing symptoms (depressive, anxious). At Time 2 (T2; May through July 2020; mid-pandemic), adolescents completed self-report measures of their internalizing symptoms (depressive, anxious). On average, adolescents’ anxious and depressive symptoms increased from T1 to T2, although they exhibited substantial variability, with reports ranging from decreasing symptoms to increasing symptoms. Although on average adolescents reported increases in anxious symptoms from T1 to T2, adolescents with higher T1 peer victimization reported less positive change in anxious symptoms. Similarly, although on average adolescents reported increases in depressive symptoms from T1 to T2, adolescents with higher levels of T1 aggression reported less positive change in depressive symptoms from T1 to T2. Discussion focused on restrictions on in-person peer interactions necessitated by COVID-19 that may reduce adolescents’ distress when their pre-pandemic daily lives were characterized by negative peer relations.

The current study examined whether individual differences in depressive and anxious symptoms relate to level of daily self-esteem and instability of daily self-esteem in adolescence. Participants were a racially and ethnically diverse sample of adolescents (79 girls, 65 boys; M age = 13.53 years). Adolescents reported on their depressive and anxious symptoms during a baseline home visit. Then, adolescents reported on their daily self-esteem over the course of 12 consecutive days. Using hierarchical linear modeling analyses, level of daily self-esteem was negatively associated with depressive but not anxious symptoms. In addition, a positive relation emerged between instability of daily self-esteem and depressive symptoms when controlling for level of self-esteem; a similar relation did not emerge for anxious symptoms. The differential findings that emerged between both level and instability of daily self-esteem and depressive versus anxious symptoms may be linked to differences in the temporal orientation of these two types of internalizing symptoms; specifically, depressive symptoms result from backward-looking rumination over previous experiences, whereas anxious symptoms emerge from forward-looking worry about future events (Wenze et al., 2012).

The goal of the current study was to investigate whether peer rejection and peer victimization mediated the relation between children's aggressive behaviors and depressive symptoms. Participants were 533 fourth- and fifth-grade children (289 girls and 244 boys). Data on aggression and peer victimization were collected through teacher and peer report, whereas data on depressive symptoms were collected through self-, teacher, and peer report. Peer rejection was measured through peer nominations of liking and disliking. Through testing two competing concurrent structural models, results revealed that peer rejection and peer victimization jointly mediated the overall relation between aggression and depressive symptoms, although this mediation was only partial. Furthermore, peer rejection partially mediated the relation between aggression and peer victimization, and peer victimization partially mediated the relation between peer rejection and depressive symptoms. Suggestions for other factors that may contribute to these mediated relations are provided.

This study examined sleep patterns, sleep problems, and their correlates in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Subjects consisted of 167 ASD children, including 108 with autistic disorder, 27 with Asperger's syndrome, and 32 with other diagnoses of ASD. Mean age was 8.8 years (SD = 4.2), 86% were boys. Parents completed a self-administered child sleep questionnaire. Results showed that average night sleep duration was 8.9 h (SD = 1.8), 16% of children shared a bed with parent. About 86% of children had at least one sleep problem almost every day, including 54% with bedtime resistance, 56% with insomnia, 53% with parasomnias, 25% with sleep disordered breathing, 45% with morning rise problems, and 31% with daytime sleepiness. Multivariate logistic regression analyses indicated that younger age, hypersensitivity, co-sleeping, epilepsy, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), asthma, bedtime ritual, medication use, and family history of sleep problems were related to sleep problems. Comorbid epilepsy, insomnia, and parasomnias were associated with increased risk for daytime sleepiness. Results suggest that both dyssomnias and parasomnias are very prevalent in children with ASD. Although multiple child and family factors are associated with sleep problems, other comorbid disorders of autism may play a major role.