Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t8hqh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-30T19:27:47.208Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The acquisition of social competence: An examination of factors influencing children's level of social competence

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 October 2015

Mandie B. Shean ,
Lisbeth T. Pike  and
Paul T. Murphy
Mandie B. Shean*
Affiliation:
Edith Cowan University
Lisbeth T. Pike
Affiliation:
Edith Cowan University
Paul T. Murphy
Affiliation:
Edith Cowan University
*
14 Cachuca Court, DUNCRAIG, WA 6023, Phone: 08 9447 7520, Email: [email protected]
Get access

Abstract

The acquisition of social competence is an important developmental task for children. This review examines how children's characteristics and environmental factors contribute to children's achievement of social competence. Environmental factors are addressed through Bronfenbrenner's (1999) ecological systems model of the microsystem, mesosystem and exosystem. The microsystem includes the home environment with parent-parent, parent-child and sibling relationships. The mesosystem includes the school environment with peer and teacher relationships. Finally, the exosystem incorporates indirect environments such as parent work, economic status and the media. Issues of reciprocal effects are addressed and the suggestion is made that social competence is the result of a pattern of experiences rather than one or two major causes. It is recommended that future research focus on children's experiences that have lasting effects.

Keywords

ChildrenSocial CompetenceSystems
Type
Research Article
Information
The Educational and Developmental Psychologist , Volume 22 , Issue 2 , 2005 , pp. 29 - 46
Copyright
Copyright © Australian Psychological Society 2005

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Adams, C., Hillman, N., & Gaydos, G. (1994). Behavioral difficulties in toddlers: Impact of sociocultural and biological risk factors. Journal of Clinical and Child Psychology, 23, 373–381.Google Scholar
Amato, P.R. (2001). Children of divorce in the 1990s: An update of the Amato and Keith (1991) meta-analysis. Journal of Family Psychology, 15, 355–370.Google Scholar
Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2001). Marriages and Divorces, Australia (No. 3310.0), Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: Author.Google Scholar
Bandura, A., Ross, D., & Ross, S.A. (1961). Transmission of aggression through imitation of aggressive models. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 63, 575–582.Google Scholar
Barth, J.M., Dunlap, S.T., Dane, H., Lochman, J.E., & Wells, K.C. (2004). Classroom environment influences on aggression, peer relations, and academic focus Journal of School Psychology, 42, 115–133.Google Scholar
Baumrind, D. (1993). The average expectable environment is not good enough: A response to Scarr. Child Development, 64,1299–1317.Google Scholar
Boyum, L.A., & Parke, R.D. (1995). The role of family emotional expressiveness in the development of children’s social competence. Journal of Marriage and Family, 57, 593–604.Google Scholar
Bronfenbrenner, U. (1999). Environments in developmental perspective: Theoretical and operational models. In Friedman, S.L. (Ed); Wachs, T.D. (Ed). Measuring environment across the life span: Emerging methods and concepts (pp. 3–28). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.Google Scholar
Cartledge, G., Adedapo, V., & Johnson, C.T. (1998). Teacher and parent assessments of the social competence of inner-city children: Issues of gender within race. Journal of Negro Education, 67,115–126.Google Scholar
Chang, L. (2003). Variable effects of children’s aggression, social withdrawal, and prosocial leadership as functions of teacher beliefs and behaviors. Child Development, 74, 535–548.Google Scholar
Chatfield, J.E. (2002). Influence of media violence on children. American Family Physician, 65, 735–742.Google Scholar
Craighead, W.E., & Nemeroff, C.B. (Eds.). (2000). The Corsini encyclopedia of psychology and behavioral science (3rd ed., Vols. 1–4). New York: J. Wiley.Google Scholar
Crick, N.R., & Dodge, K.A. (1994). A review and reformulation of social information-processing mechanisms in children’s social adjustment. Psychological Bulletin, 115, 74–101.Google Scholar
Crouter, A.C., Bumpus, M.F., Maguire, M.C., & McHale, S.M. (1999). Linking parents’ work pressure and adolescents’ well-being: Insights into dynamics in dual-earner families. Developmental Psychology, 35, 1453–1461.Google Scholar
Eaton, W.O., Chipperfield, J.G., & Singbeil, C.E. (1989). Birth order and activity level in children. Developmental Psychology, 25, 668–672.Google Scholar
Eisenberg, N., Fabes, R.A., & Murphy, B.C. (1996). Parents’ reactions to children’s negative emotions: Relations to children’s’ social competence and comforting behavior. Child Development, 67, 2227–2247.Google Scholar
Elliot, S.N., & Gresham, F.M. (1993). Social skills interventions for children. Behavior Modification, 17, 287–313.Google Scholar
Fabes, R.A., Eisenberg, N., Karbon, M., Bernzweig, J.L., Speer, A., & Carlo, G. (1994). Socialization of children’s vicarious emotional responding and prosocial behavior: Relations with mothers’ perceptions of children’s emotional reactivity. Developmental Psychology, 30, 44–55.Google Scholar
Fabes, R.A., Eisenberg, N., & Miller, P.A. (1990). Maternal correlates of children’s vicarious emotional responsiveness. Developmental Psychology, 26, 639–648.Google Scholar
Fabes, R.A., Leonard, S.A., Kupanoff, K., & Martin, C.L. (2001). Parental coping with children’s negative emotions: Relations with children’s emotional and social responding. Child Development, 72, 907–920.Google Scholar
Farmer-Dougan, V., Viechtbauer, W., & French, T. (1999). Peer-prompted social skills: The role of teacher consultation in student success. Educational Psychology, 19, 207–219.Google Scholar
Gallop eyes parenting contracts (2004). Retrieved August 4, 2004, from http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=13783 Google Scholar
Greenberger, E., & Goldberg, W.A. (1989). Work, parenting, and the socialization of children. Developmental Psychology, 25, 22–35.Google Scholar
Gresham, F.M., & Elliot, S.N. (1990). Social skills rating system manual. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service.Google Scholar
Hart, B., Brinkman, S., & Blackmore, S. (2003). How well are we raising our children in the north metropolitan area?: Early development index 2003. Perth, Western Australia: North Metropolitan Health Service (WA).Google Scholar
Hart, C.H., Ladd, G.W., & Burleson, B.R. (1990). Children’s expectations of the outcomes of social strategies: Relations with sociometric status and maternal disciplinary styles. Child Development, 61, 127–137.Google Scholar
Hektner, J.M, August, G.J., & Realmuto, G.M. (2003). Effects of pairing aggressive and nonaggressive children in strategic peer affiliation. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 31, 399–412.Google Scholar
Hoglund, W.L., & Leadbeater, B.J. (2004). The effects of family, school, and classroom ecologies on changes in children’s social competence and emotional and behavioral problems in first grade. Developmental Psychology, 40, 533–544.Google Scholar
Isley, S.L., O’Neill, R., Clatfelter, D., & Parke, R.D. (1999). Parent and child expressed affect and children’s social competence: Modeling direct and indirect pathways. Developmental Psychology, 35, 547–560.Google Scholar
Jaycox, L.H., & Repetti, R.L. (1993) Conflict in families and the psychological adjustment of préadolescent children. Journal of Family Psychology, 7, 344–355.Google Scholar
Jones, D.C., Abby, B.B., & Cumberland, A. (1998). The development of display rule knowledge: Linkages with family expressiveness and social competence. Child Development, 69, 1209–1222.Google Scholar
Kail, R.V., & Cavanaugh, J.C. (2000). Human development: A lifespan view (2nd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.Google Scholar
Katz, L.F., & Woodin, E.M. (2002). Hostility, hostile detachment, and conflict engagement in marriages: Effects on child and family functioning. Child Development, 73, 636–652.Google Scholar
Kesner, J.E., & McHenry, P.C. (2001). Single parenthood and social competence in children of color. Families in Society: The Journal of Contemporary Human Services, 82, 136–148.Google Scholar
Lindsey, E.W., & Mize, J. (2001). Interparental agreement, parent-child responsiveness, and children’s peer competence. Family Relations, 50, 348–354.Google Scholar
Lockwood, R.L., Kitzmann, K.M., & Cohen, R. (2001). The impact of sibling warmth and conflict on children’s social competence with peers. Child Study Journal, 31, 47–66.Google Scholar
MacDonald, K., & Parke, R.D. (1984). Bridging the gap: Parent-child play interaction and peer interactive competence. Child Development, 55, 1265–1277.Google Scholar
Markus, H. (1977). Self-schemata and processing information about the self. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 35, 63–78.Google Scholar
McDowell, D.J., Parke, R.D., & Wang, S.J. (2003). Differences between mothers’ and fathers’ advice-giving style and content: Relations with social competence and psychological functioning in middle childhood. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 49, 55–80.Google Scholar
Mistry, R.S., Vandewater, E.A., Huston, A.C., & McLoyd, V.C. (2002). Economic well-being and children’s social adjustment: The role of family process in an ethnically diverse low-income sample. Child Development, 73, 935–951.Google Scholar
Mostow, A.J., Izard, C.E., Fine, S., & Trentacosta, C.J. (2002). Modeling emotional, cognitive and behavioral predictors of peer acceptance. Child Development, 73, 1775–1787.Google Scholar
Özmert, E., Toyran, M., & Yurdakök, K. (2002). Behavioral correlates of television viewing in primary school children evaluated by the Child Behavior Checklist. American Medical Association, 156, 910–914.Google Scholar
Repetti, R.L. (1989). Effects of daily workload on subsequent behavior during marital interaction: The roles of social withdrawal and spouse support. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57, 651–659.Google Scholar
Repetti, R.L., Taylor, S.E., & Seeman, T.E. (2002). Risky families: Family social environments and the mental and physical health of offspring. Psychological Bulletin, 128, 330–366.Google Scholar
Repetti, R.L., & Wood, J. (1997). The effects of daily stress at work on mothers’ interactions with preschoolers. Journal of Family Psychology, 11, 90–108.Google Scholar
Robinson, T.N., Wilde, M.L., Navracruz, L.C., Haydel, K.F., & Varady, A. (2001). Effects of reducing children’s television and video game use on aggressive behavior: A randomized controlled trial. Archives of Paediatrics And Adolescent Medicine, 155, 17–23.Google Scholar
Rudolph, K.D., Hammen, C., & Burge, D. (1995). Cognitive representations of self, family, and peers in school-age children: Links with social competence and sociometric status. Child Development, 66, 1385–1402.Google Scholar
Sanson, A., & Smart, D. (2001). The role of temperament and behaviour and their “fit” with parents’ expectations. Family Matters, 59, 10–15.Google Scholar
Scourfield, J., Bethan, J., Neilson, M., & McGuffin, P. (2004). The development of prosocial behaviour in children and adolescents: A twin study. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 45, 927–935.Google Scholar
Stormshak, E.A., Bellanti, C.J., Bierman, K.L., Coie, J.D., Dodge, K.A., Greenberg, M.T., et al. (1996). The quality of sibling relationships and the development of social competence and behavioral control in aggressive children. Developmental Psychology, 32, 79–89.Google Scholar
Thomson-Rountree, P., & Musun-Baskett, L. (1981). A further examination of project aware: The relationship between teacher behaviors and changes in student behavior. Journal of School Psychology, 19, 260–266.Google Scholar
Walker, L.J., Hennig, K.H., & Krettenauer, T. (2000). Parent and peer contexts for children’s moral reasoning development. Child Development, 71, 1033–1046.Google Scholar
Welsh, M., Parke, R.D., Widaman, K., & O’Neill, R. (2001). Linkages between children’s social and academic competence: A longitudinal analysis. Journal of School Psychology, 39, 463–482.Google Scholar
Wentzel, K.R. (1998). Social relationships and motivation in middle school: The role of parents, teachers, and peers. Journal of Educational Psychology, 90, 202–209.Google Scholar
Wentzel, K.R. (2002). Are effective teachers like good parents? Interpersonal predictors of school adjustment in early adolescence. Child Development, 73, 287–301.Google Scholar
White, K.J., Sherman, M.D., & Jones, K. (1996). Children’s perceptions of behavior problem peers: Effects of teacher feedback and peer-reputed status. Journal of School Psychology, 34, 53–72.Google Scholar