Time With Peers From Middle Childhood to Late Adolescence: Developmental Course and Adjustment Correlates
Open accessAbstract
This study examined the developmental course and adjustment correlates of time with peers from age 8 to 18. On seven occasions over 8 years, the two eldest siblings from 201 European American, working- and middle-class families provided questionnaire and/or phone diary data. Multilevel models revealed that girls' time with mixed-/opposite-sex peers increased beginning in middle childhood, but boys' time increased beginning in early adolescence. For both girls and boys, time with same-sex peers peaked in middle adolescence. At the within-person level, unsupervised time with mixed-/opposite-sex peers longitudinally predicted problem behaviors and depressive symptoms, and supervised time with mixed-/opposite-sex peers longitudinally predicted better school performance. Findings highlight the importance of social context in understanding peer involvement and its implications for youth development.
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Compared with children under 10, adolescents spend more time with peers than family and form more complex peer relationships.
“Compared with children (aged <10 years), adolescents spend more time with peers than with their family and form more complex peer relationships.6”
From The effects of social deprivation on adolescent development and mental health (2020) · cites this paper as [6]
The Abstract and Discussion (page numbers unavailable) report increasing peer involvement from childhood through adolescence and a shift toward mixed- and opposite-sex peer groups. The paper does not establish that adolescents spend more time with peers than with family, or directly compare the complexity of their peer relationships with those of children under 10. (LLM, conf=0.85)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredSubstantial changes in social exposure and orientation take place during adolescence, with more time spent with peers than family, increased influence of friends/peers, and decreased influence of parents/adults.
“Substantial changes in social exposure and orientation take place during adolescence, as more time is spent with peers than with family, 131-134 the influence of friends or peers increases, and the influence of parents or adults decreases (appendix p 11). 135,136”
From The Lancet Psychiatry Commission on youth mental health (2024) · cites this paper as [131]
The Discussion reports that time with same-sex peers increased from middle childhood to late adolescence, supporting greater peer involvement. The cited passages do not establish that adolescents spend more time with peers than with family, or that peer influence increases while parental or adult influence decreases. (LLM, conf=0.87)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
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“As youths transition from childhood to adolescence, they spend increasing amounts of unsupervised time with peers (Lam et al., 2014).”
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- Authors
- Lam, C. B., McHale, S. M., & Crouter, A. C.
- Affiliations
- Education University of Hong Kong (HK)
- Pennsylvania State University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Lam, Chun Bun
- Venue
- Child Development
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2014-07-01
- Volume
- 85
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 1677-1693
- ISSN
- 0009-3920 (ISSN-L)
- 1467-8624
- PMC
- PMC4107039
- OpenAlex
- W2123284229
- Cited by
- 339
- References
- 28
- Citations by year
- 2026: 34 · 2025: 40 · 2024: 58 · 2023: 43 · 2022: 48 · 2021: 34 · 2020: 23 · 2019: 18 · 2018: 15 · 2017: 14 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 4 · 2014: 2
- FWCI
- 9.83
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Licence
- Locations
- Child Development (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R01-HD32336)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
- Social Sciences › Safety Research › Youth Development and Social Support
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Psychosocial Factors Impacting Youth
- Keywords
- peer time, peer relationships, same-sex peers, peer engagement, behavioral problems, depressive symptoms, academic performance, gender differences, middle childhood, adolescence, youth development, social environment
- MeSH terms
- Adolescent, Child, Child Development, Female, Humans, Interpersonal Relations, Longitudinal Studies, Male, Peer Group, Sex Factors, Social Adjustment, Adolescent Development
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