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Friendships affect children's development and adjustment. This longitudinal study examined the possible heterogeneity and gender differences in the trajectories of children's friendship quality, as well as the relations between distinct friendship quality trajectories and school adjustment. A total of 3,779 Chinese elementary school students (45.5% girls, M age = 9.94 years, SD = 0.72 at Time 1) completed measures of relevant constructs on five occasions at 6-month intervals. Latent class growth modeling revealed four heterogeneous developmental trajectory classes of friendship quality: high-increasing (49.6%), moderate-decreasing (5.1%), moderate-increasing (31.9%), and low-stable (13.4%). Girls were more likely than boys to fall into the higher friendship quality trajectory classes in reference to the low-stable class. Children in the high-increasing class and low-stable class showed the best and the worst school adjustment, respectively. The identification of four heterogeneous developmental trajectories of friendship quality with differential school adjustment outcomes highlights the importance of intervention programs tailored to specific groups for promoting children's friendship quality and school adjustment. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

This study explored the relations among peer victimization (i.e., physical, relational, and cyberbullying victimization), learning flow, and academic achievement among elementary school students, using a seven-wave longitudinal design across four consecutive semesters. Participants were 1,440 students from Grades 3 and 4 in China ( M age = 9.91 years, 52.4% male). Measures of peer victimization and learning flow were completed in the middle of every semester, from the second to fourth semesters. Academic achievement was measured via students' final exam scores in Chinese, Math, and English at the end of each semester. The results indicated that: (a) relational victimization, but not physical and cyberbullying victimization, directly predicted subsequent lower academic achievement; in the reverse path, lower academic achievement predicted all three types of subsequent peer victimization; (b) learning flow directly predicted academic achievement and vice versa; and (c) learning flow mediated the relations between the three types of peer victimization and lower academic achievement. The findings suggested that educational experiences are needed that both protect elementary school students from relational victimization and facilitate learning flow to promote students' academic achievement. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Based on expectancy-value theory, this longitudinal study was designed to test the relations between two achievement task values (i.e., attainment value and utility value) as well as their respective influences on academic achievement and depressive symptoms. This study incorporated a sample of 897 ( M age = 10.36 years, 55.8% male) and a cross-validation sample of 821 ( M age = 10.42 years, 55.2% male) Chinese elementary school students from Grade 4. The students completed measures of achievement task values and depressive symptoms (parent reports) in the middle of two consecutive semesters and their academic achievement levels were assessed at the end of each semester. The results of cross-lagged analyses showed that: (a) attainment value reciprocally and positively related to utility value; (b) baseline attainment value positively related to later academic achievement and negatively related to later depressive symptoms after controlling for baseline utility value; (c) baseline academic achievement positively related to later attainment value and utility value. Furthermore, latent profile analyses revealed: (a) four achievement task values profiles (i.e., high, medium, low achievement task values, and high attainment value and low utility value) in both samples; (b) the profiles were differentially related to subsequent academic achievement and depressive symptoms. Theoretically, the findings of reciprocal relations between achievement task values and their relations with the academic and mental health outcomes refine and extend the scope of expectancy-value theory. Practically, intervention strategies may be most effective by focusing on the synergistic development of high attainment value and utility value in promoting positive developmental outcomes in early adolescents. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Gratitude is a human strength that is beneficial for psychosocial adjustment and academic adjustment. This study aimed to examine the (a) heterogeneity and gender differences in the developmental trajectories of gratitude to obtain a more nuanced understanding of the development of gratitude in children, and (b) relations between these trajectories and psychosocial adjustment, as well as academic adjustment outcomes among Chinese elementary schoolchildren to elucidate the specific benefits of gratitude for children. A sample of 715 children (45.6% girls; Mage = 8.96 years, SD = 0.76 at Time 1) from 2 Chinese elementary schools completed a packet of measures on 6 occasions across 3 years, using 6-month intervals. Latent Class Growth Modeling revealed 4 heterogeneous developmental trajectory classes of gratitude: High-Increasing, Moderate High-Decreasing, Moderate Low-Increasing, and Low-Stable. Girls were less likely than boys to fall into the Moderate Low-Increasing class or Low-Stable class in reference to the High-Increasing class. Children in the High-Increasing class and Low-Stable class showed the best and the worst psychosocial adjustment and academic adjustment, respectively. The results suggested that gratitude interventions may require adaptations for specific groups, with the Low-Stable class and Moderate High-Decreasing class needing particular attention. Meanwhile, educators aiming to increase elementary schoolchildren's psychosocial adjustment and academic adjustment should consider implementing assessment and intervention programs to promote gratitude early in the school years as well as throughout the elementary school years to prevent trajectories of negative developmental patterns. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

The research examined whether clusters of loneliness and social anxiety could be identified through latent profile analysis in a longitudinal study of 892 Chinese adolescents (47.8% male), on average 12.96 (SD = 0.62) years old. Six clusters were identified: (a) low loneliness and social anxiety, (b) average loneliness and social anxiety, (c) high social anxiety and low loneliness, (d) high loneliness and low social anxiety, (e) moderate loneliness and social anxiety, and (f) high loneliness and social anxiety. Findings indicated that baseline family dysfunction and school-related stress served as risk factors for membership in the clusters representing higher levels of loneliness and social anxiety compared to the low cluster. Controlling for the baseline levels of respective outcomes, 6 clusters were differentially related to subsequent comprehensive mental health outcomes, underscoring the importance of the roles of both the loneliness and social anxiety processes in adolescents' mental health. Furthermore, these findings indicated that the interactions between social anxiety and loneliness within individuals were differentially related to levels of comprehensive mental health outcomes, implying the need for intervention programs to be tailored to the members of the specific clusters. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Situated within a positive psychology perspective, the current study examined the relations among academic achievement, self-esteem, and subjective well-being (SWB) in school among Chinese elementary school students using a longitudinal mediation model. A total of 807 elementary school students ( M age = 9.43 years; 52.9% male) completed a multimeasure questionnaire that tapped the targeted variables at 3 time points, across 18 months. After controlling for gender, age, and family socioeconomic status, the results revealed that (a) academic achievement positively predicted later SWB in school; (b) self-esteem at Time 2 completely mediated the relation between academic achievement at Time 1 and SWB in school at Time 3; and (c) significant bidirectional relations were observed between self-esteem and SWB in school. Limitations and practical applications related to the cultural context of China were discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).