ERIC EJ1001499: The Role of Sociability Self-Concept in the Relationship between Exposure to and Concern about Aggression in Middle School

2013·0.44 MB·English

by  ERIC

RMLE Online— Volume 36, No. 7
Karen Weller Swanson, Ed.D., Editor
Mercer University
Atlanta, Georgia
2013 • Volume 36 • Number 7 ISSN 1940-4476
The Role of Sociability Self-Concept in the Relationship between
Exposure to and Concern about Aggression in Middle School
Janice Williams Miller
Oklahoma State University
Stillwater, OK
Abstract
This study examined middle grades students’ School violence appears to be on the decline. Mayer
sociability self-concept and their perceptions (2010) reported that violent incidents have leveled
about feeling safe at school. Participants’ (N = 420) off, while the Centers for Disease Control data
exposure to school aggression and concern about the from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey revealed a
potential for violence at school were measured across significant decrease in school violence from 1993
four critical areas: fighting, bullying, stealing, and to 2005 (Dinkes, Kemp, & Braum, 2009). These
seeing weapons. Results indicated a limited exposure reports indicate that schools have become safer places
to school aggression for these young adolescents. in which school crime is relatively stable (DeVoe,
However, students who did report seeing more Peter, Noonan, Snyder, & Baum, 2005), and students
aggression at school also tended to be more concerned can focus on their academic endeavors. However,
about aggressive incidents occurring. The prediction while students are currently less likely to be directly
of concern by exposure was stronger among students exposed to school violence, safety and security
low in sociability self-concept and weaker for those remain pressing issues (Mayer & Furlong, 2010).
high in sociability self-concept. Sociability self-
Student exposure to violence and harm at school can
concept, thus, appeared to be a protective factor, in
include direct victimization as well as witnessing the
that sociability self-concept buffered the effect of
victimization of others; both greatly affect school
exposure to aggression on concern about violence
climate. Further, research indicates that students who
at school. These results highlight the importance of
experience vicarious or low-level aggression, such as
attending to sociability self-concept during early
intimidation, also suffer harmful psychosocial effects
adolescence in our efforts to reduce concern about
(Nasel et al., 2001). The Indicators of School Crime
aggression in the middle grades school environment.
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RMLE Online— Volume 36, No. 7
and Safety (Dinkes, Kemp, & Braum, 2009) indicated has played a mediating role in the victimization-
that less aggressive acts were more prevalent than to-personal adjustment relationship (Malecki &
more severe violence at school. This report, based on Demaray, 2004) and served as a moderator between
a variety of independent data sources, also noted the adolescent victimization and distress (Davidson
types of aggression students most likely encounter in & Demaray, 2007). These studies highlight the
the school environment: fighting, bullying, stealing, importance of the social support given to middle
and seeing weapons. Thus, educators wishing to graders by significant others. However, the salience
reduce aggression at school might focus on these four of such support may depend on the sociability self-
critical areas. concept of that adolescent.
According to The U.S. Department of Education’s Sociability Self-Concept
National Center for Educational Statistics (2006),
student aggression toward others is often identified Global self-concept refers to the overall extent to
in elementary school, with exposure becoming more which one values oneself; however, individuals
frequent and severe during the middle grades. For may also hold more differentiated beliefs in
example, in a large sample of middle grades students, specific domains of functioning (Harter, 1996). For
Flannery, Wester, and Singer (2004) reported that example, a student’s self-evaluation in the academic
79% of the students had witnessed fighting, with 81% domain may differ from a self-evaluation in the
indicating they saw peers being threatened at school. social domain. Whereas global conceptions of self
It is not surprising that dealing with school violence remain fairly stable (Shavelson & Bolus, 1982),
is ranked as a top concern among adolescents domain-specific conceptions can be influenced by
(Burnham, 2009). contextual experiences and by significant others.
Prior research has noted young adolescents’ self-
Adolescence has long been recognized as a concepts in the areas of social skills are particularly
transitional time (Eccles et al., 1993) full of fluid and receptive to both positive and negative
opportunity and vulnerability, in which youngsters influences (Rice & Dolgin, 2005). Indeed, young
are confronted with rapid developmental changes adolescents are particularly vulnerable to changes
and social role redefinition. Social functioning in self-concept (Baldwin & Hoffmann, 2002); thus,
becomes very important, as bonds with parents are sociability self-concept is an important construct
transformed and relations with peers take on new that should be addressed. In general, sociability is a
meaning (Eisenberg, Neumark-Sztainer, & Perry, preference for being in the company of others versus
2003). Conception of self is very much in focus being alone (Cheek & Buss, 1981) and is based on
(Ybrandt, 2008) as young people self-examine the extent to which a student prefers to have many
to determine who they really are (Steinberg & social relationships (Mounts, Valentine, Anderson,
Morris, 2001) and how they fit into their world. The & Boswell, 2009). Even within the context of
development of the socially integrated perceptions of adolescence, when peer relations become increasingly
self typically occur during adolescence (Sebastian, important, sociability self-concept appears to vary
Burnett, & Blakemore, 2008), and an abundance of across individuals (Bokhorst, Sumter, & Westenberg,
research has focused on social contextual factors 2010). In this study, sociability self-concept refers to
believed to affect middle level students who deal a student’s social predisposition. Thus, a student low
with aggression at school. For example, Tarrant, in sociability self-concept would prefer more social
MacKenzie, and Hewitt (2006) applied a social distance, while a student high in sociability self-
identity perspective when studying adolescent concept would tend to seek and encourage many close
friendship group association within the context of social interactions.
self-concept. They discussed the potential benefits
of understanding adolescents’ subjective perceptions The current study was designed to determine the
of peer relationships, as they relate to aggression. relation between middle level students’ exposure to
Harvey (2007) advocated the development of positive school aggression and concern about violence in the
peer relationships and prosocial behaviors at school four previously noted critical areas. The data were
to promote resiliency to school violence. Malecki, analyzed with exposure to aggression as a predictor
Demaray, and Davidson (2008) expanded the notion of concern about violence occurring, with student
of peer support to social support, which included sociability self-concept moderating this relationship.
support from parents, teachers, classmates, friends, That is, the effect of exposure on concern at differing
and the school. Following this line, social support levels of sociability self-concept was considered within
© 2013 Association for Middle Level Education 2
RMLE Online— Volume 36, No. 7
a regression framework. The research addressed The SSSQ includes items that ask students to “rate
two questions: (1) Is exposure to school aggression your level of concern regarding incidents that could
significantly related to concern about the potential for occur at your school” in the specific areas of fighting,
violence in the four noted areas? and (2) If exposure stealing, bullying, and seeing weapons. The survey
influences concern, is that effect contingent on also asks students to report actual occurrences of
students’ perceptions of sociability self-concept? aggression in these four critical areas. All items were
rated along Likert-type scales that ranged from 1
Method to 5, where higher scores indicated greater student
concern with, and actual exposure to, aggression at
Participants and Procedure
school. The reliability of the scores was assessed for
Study participants included seventh (n = 225)
this student sample, and the obtained coefficients
and eighth (n = 195) grade students attending one
supported internal consistency reliability for the
Midwestern public middle school. The rate and types
scores from these item sets; concern α = .81, experience
of violence reported at this school were unknown,
α = .71. A continuous “exposure” and “concern”
with educators seeking this information. Given
variable score for each student was computed by
the suburban nature of the community, the risk of
summing individual item scores across the four types
exposure to aggression was presumed to be lower
of aggression, with scores ranging from 4 to 20.
than in urban communities (Katz & Lang, 2003).
The 204 females and 216 males were predominantly Sociability self-concept was measured with the MTS:
white and middle class. All students enrolled in Multidimensional Test of Self-Concept (Lathrop,
the general education homeroom period were 1988), developed to tap an individual’s perceptions
invited to participate. Teachers distributed parent/ of their current state of self-concept in three domains
guardian participation consent forms in class for (sociability, competence, and dependability). This
the students to take home. This form specified the instrument was specifically designed to assess
purpose and procedures of the study, the voluntary nonacademic self-concept, in contrast to many self-
nature of participation, and the confidentiality of concept measures that stress overall or academic
all responses. Participants responded anonymously self-concept. The scales, based on social influence
to questionnaires assessing perceived sociability processes in counseling, were designed to measure
self-concept and school safety during their regularly dimensions of self-concept that have direct clinical
scheduled first period class. In all, 420 of the 518 relevance. The scales were standardized on junior
eligible students participated; the remaining did and high school students, college students, working
not have parental permission to participate or were adults, and retirees (Lathrop, 1986).
unavailable or unwilling to take part in the study.
Given the importance of peer relations during
Measures adolescence, the current study used only the
The SSSQ: School Safety and Security Questionnaire sociability subscale. The instrument was developed
(Miller & Nickell, 2008) is a tool for assessing student to allow for the use of the individual subscales. As
perceptions in the middle grades school environment. such, the reliability and validity of the sociability
This measure provides educators with a tool to gather self-concept scale has been supported. This six-
school-specific information, which can serve as a item scale is reported to have good reliability, as
guide for educational practitioners in developing noted through generalizability (.863) and internal
appropriate programs and interventions to deal with consistency (.843) alpha coefficients (Lathrop, 1987).
safety and security issues at the local level. The In addition, Lathrop (1987) reported an adequate test-
questionnaire has undergone extensive modifications retest stability coefficient (.66) with a three-month
(Miller & Nickell, 2007) and easily can be delay. Confirmatory factor analyses using LISREL
personalized for use in site-specific applications. The statistical software and correlations with other
psychometric properties of the measure have been established self-concept measures have been cited
evaluated, with Miller and Nickell (2008) providing in support of the construct validity of the sociability
strong support for the reliability and validity of self-concept subscale.
student scores on the measure. The factor structure
clearly reflected the theoretical conceptual structure, Students responded to six MTS items using a 7-point
which is related to important aspects of school safety graphic rating scale, with half the items reverse-
research and practice. scored. Students were instructed to “Please rate
yourself as you really are,” with two adjectives
© 2013 Association for Middle Level Education 3
RMLE Online— Volume 36, No. 7
anchoring the end points of each bipolar item. Given the non-significant sex and grade differences,
Summed responses could range from 6 to 42 with the analyses proceeded with the full student sample.
higher scores indicating greater sociability self- Table 3 presents item-level descriptive statistics for
concept. The coefficient alpha calculated with the the three variables of interest. Pearson correlation
middle school data in the current study was .74, coefficients indicated that, though the relationship
suggesting acceptable internal consistency reliability between sociability and exposure reached statistical
for the scores from this student sample. significance (r = -.122, p = .024), the relationship
between sociability and concern did not (r = -.061, ns).
Results
The exposure-to-concern association (r = .621, p < .001)
Preliminary Analyses: suggested that, overall, students who tended to report
Exposure-to-Concern Relationship more exposure to school aggression also tended
With respect to student exposure to, and concern to voice serious concern about violence at school.
about, school aggression, ANOVAs (see Table 1) On the whole, personal experience with violence
yielded non-significant sex and grade differences. shared about 39% of the variability in concern about
Table 2 presents the supporting exposure and concern aggressive incidents occurring at school. Exposure-
means and standard deviations for girls and boys by to-concern bivariate correlations were also computed
grade. Overall, the exposure mean was 6.46, while in each of the four critical areas. Each of the r values
the average concern reported by students was 10.63. reached statistical significance, fighting = .20,
As shown in the table, the standard deviation values stealing = .33, bullying = .33, weapons = .19, each
for concern were larger, which suggests a greater with p <. 001. In every area, students encountering
variability in the student concern ratings relative to more aggression at school expressed higher levels of
the exposure ratings. concern about the potential for school violence, with
shared variance averaging about 7%.
Table 1
ANOVA Summary Tables for Concern and Exposure with Sex, Grade, and Interaction
Concern Exposure
Source SS df MS F sig Source SS df MS F sig
Sex 10.02 1 10.02 0.66 .419 Sex 2.33 1 2.33 0.32 .573
Grade 2.22 1 2.22 0.15 .704 Grade 20.79 1 20.79 2.88 .090
S * G 6.38 1 6.38 0.42 .519 S * G 13.59 1 13.59 1.88 .173
Error 6308.04 416 15.16 Error 3009.07 416 7.23
Total 6326.66 419 Total 3045.78 419
Table 2
Descriptive Statistics by Sex and Grade
Male Female
7th 8th 7th 8th
(n=111) (n=105) (n=114) (n=90)
Mean (SD) Mean (SD) Mean (SD) Mean (SD)
Exposure 5.92 (2.58) 6.70 (2.65) 6.55 (2.68) 6.69 (2.74)
Concern 10.59 (3.77) 11.26 (4.66) 10.50 (4.14) 10.42 (4.07)
© 2013 Association for Middle Level Education 4
RMLE Online— Volume 36, No. 7
Table 3 Exposure on Concern Moderated by Sociability
Item-level Descriptive Statistics for Sociability Self-concept, A standard multiple regression analysis was
Exposure, and Concern conducted, with concern about violence serving as the
outcome variable. The predictor variable (exposure
Sociability self-concept
to aggression) and the moderator variable (sociability
Please rate yourself as you really are
self-concept) were centered based on procedures
Mean Standard Deviation recommended by Aiken and West (1991) and Jaccard,
unfriendly –friendly 6.28 1.17 Turrisi, and Wan (1990). As a set, the R2 indicated
that these predictors accounted for about 10% of
close – distant 2.68 1.56
the variance in student concern, F(2,417) = 24.30,
depressed – cheerful 5.40 1.48 p < .001, with only exposure reaching statistical
significance, t(417) = 6.87, p < .001. A second multiple
enthusiastic – indifferent 2.38 1.52
regression analysis was conducted, which added the
incompatible – compatible 5.65 1.48
centered exposure-sociability interaction term.
sociable – unsociable 2.05 1.33 The R2 indicated that this model accounted for
about 12% of the variance in student concern,
Exposure
F(3,416) = 18.20, p < .001. Exposure was statistically
This school year, how often have you
significant, t(416) = 6.89, p < .001, as was the two-way
Mean Standard Deviation interaction, t(416) = 2.34, p = .020. Table 4 presents
the regression results.
been in fights at school? 2.46 1.18
had money or Experts have noted the difficulty in detecting an
belongings stolen from you? 2.83 1.16 interaction effect within a regression framework
been threatened by a bully? 2.50 1.21 (Pedhazur & Schmelkin, 1991; Wampold & Freund,
1987). Champoux and Peters (1987) and Chaplin
seen others carrying
(1991) reported that interactions in moderated
weapons? 2.85 1.35
regressions typically account for about 1% to 3%
Concern of the variance, which is consistent with the 2%
Please rate your level of concern regarding incidents that uncovered in the current study. The statistical
could occur at your school significance of the interaction coefficient noted here
revealed that the relationship between concern and
Mean Standard Deviation
exposure varied across the range of sociability values.
fighting 1.47 .90
Without the interaction, it might have been concluded
stealing 1.85 1.09 that sociability self-concept did not significantly
influence student concern about aggression at school.
bullying 1.72 1.09
After all, sociability self-concept failed to reach
seeing weapons 1.60 1.03 significance in both regression analyses.
Table 4
Hierarchical Multiple Regression Predicting Concern, N = 420
Variables b SE Standardized β t sig
Block 1:
Sociability -.016 .034 -.022 -.46 .643
Exposure .501 .073 .320 6.87 .000
Block 2:
Sociability -.019 .034 -.026 -.56 .573
Exposure .500 .073 .319 6.89 .000
Interaction .027 .011 .108 2.34 .020
© 2013 Association for Middle Level Education 5
Comment [KWS1]: Please add graph here
RMLE Online— Volume 36, No. 7

13.00

High Soc
Mod Soc
12.00
Low Soc

11.00

Concern

10.00

9.00

8.00
One SD Below Exposure Mean One SD Above
Exposure Mean Exposure Mean

Figure 1 Sociability self-concept by exposure to aggression interaction

Following Cohen and Cohen (1983) and Aiken and Discussion
West (1991), the nature of the interaction of sociability

self-concept and exposure was explored by plotting These adolescents tended to report low levels of
the results. Specifically, a series of simple regression exposure to aggression at school, a finding that is
Figure 1. Sociability self-concept by exposure to aggression interaction
equations measuring the relationship between consistent with recent research (Mayer & Furlong,
concern and exposure were generated at fixed 2010). Evidently, this middle school was perceived
sociability values: one standard deviation above the as basically safe by these young adolescents, which
mean, at the mean, and one standard deviation below mirrors trend data indicating that school crime and
the mean (see Figure 1). Significance tests indicated disruption is on the decline (Dinkes, Kemp, & Baum,
the simple slopes significantly differed from zero 2009). Also in line with other published data (e.g.,
among students with a high level of sociability self- Walcott, Upton, Bolen, & Brown, 2008), sex did not
concept, b = 0.65, β = .42, p < .001; for those at appear to significantly influence aggression. While
an average sociability level, b = 0.50, β = .31, p < .01; there is wide consensus that boys are involved in
and for those at a low level of sociability, b = 0.35, serious violence more often than girls, the role of sex
β = .22, p < .001. This pattern of results suggests that in less serious forms of aggression still needs to be
as sociability self-concept increased, the relationship fully explored (Astor, Guerra, & Van Acker, 2010).
between exposure and concern tended to decrease. Adding grade further complicates this situation.
That is, the prediction of concern by exposure tended Victimization has been related to grade level in the
to be stronger when sociability self-concept was past (Rooney et al., 2006); however, grade-specific
low and weaker when sociability self-concept was differences in reported exposure to or concern about
high. This is shown in Figure 1, where exposure to aggression were not found in this study. Although the
aggression had a strong effect on concern at low restricted age range may have limited the effect of 31
sociability, as indicated by the steep regression line. grade, these findings may provide potentially useful
This effect was lessened somewhat at the average insights into young adolescents’ perceptions of safety
level of sociability, as indicated by the moderately at school. Having an enhanced understanding of the
increasing regression line. Finally, there was a weaker importance of sociability self-concept can help inform
prediction of concern by exposure when sociability those responsible for school-based preventative
self-concept was high, as indicated by the regression interventions. More specifically, programming
line showing less slope. aimed at reducing concern about violence at school
© 2013 Association for Middle Level Education 6
RMLE Online— Volume 36, No. 7
might not need to differentiate students by sex or by Summers, 2009). The resilience literature indicates
grade. If this is the case, educators could incorporate that resiliency results from many positive social
modules to strengthen sociability self-concept into relationships (Harvey, 2007) and that stressful
interventions that would be appropriate for both girls situations are tempered for those with many strong
and boys in this age range. perceptions of social support (Luthar & Zigler, 1991).
In this study, sociability self-concept also appeared
As anticipated, exposure and concern were related;
to serve as a protective factor, as the concern of
adolescents with higher levels of exposure to
students reporting a strong sociability self-concept
aggression were inclined to report more concern
was less likely influenced by exposure to aggression.
about aggression occurring, and those with less
This highlights the importance of attending to
exposure reported less concern. This was particularly
adolescents’ sociability self-concept, particularly
true for stealing and bullying, which have been
during early adolescence when social skills are fluid
noted as prevalent in school settings (Mayer &
and open to both positive and negative influences
Furlong, 2010). The wide gap between the overall
(Rice & Dolgin, 2005; Schunk, 2000). Teachers could
average exposure (6.46) and concern (10.69) ratings
enable adolescents to interrelate more effectively
in the current study revealed that, although these
by modeling and encouraging social behaviors such
adolescents did not experience much aggression at
as cooperation, responsibility, and self-control.
school, they did report being concerned about the
Teacher support has been positively associated with
potential for aggressive incidents to occur. This
student social skill adjustment, even for high-risk
finding suggests that these adolescents may have
children (Brophy-Herb et al., 2007), and curricula
held unrealistic perceptions of risk. Burnham’s
are available to teachers who wish to improve middle
(2009) research indicates that adolescents’ fears have
grades students’ social competence (Consortium on
changed over time. Current concerns about school
the School-based Promotion of Social Competence,
violence may be due, in part, to the extensive media
1996). In addition, school counselors could intervene
coverage of events such as school shootings and
with adolescents to assist them in enhancing their
bully-based suicide. Television, radio, and Internet
social skills while creating an environment of support
coverage of such events may have sensitized youth
for all students.
to violence and compromised their feelings of safety
at school. Indeed, research indicates that students There is consensus that constructs involving “self”
who are concerned about aggressive incidents at should be clearly operationalized (Demaray et
school tend to hold lower safety perceptions (Boxer, al., 2009). Domain-specific self-concepts have
Edwards-Leeper, Goldstein, Musher-Elizenman, been linked to crucial school outcomes, such as
& Dubow, 2003). As suggested by the cumulative motivation and achievement (Schunk, 2000), and now
stress hypothesis (Sameroff, 2001), continual to perceptions of school aggression. These results
sensationalized media coverage may amplify add to the growing body of literature highlighting
students’ fears, with consequences that can affect the need to clarify self-concept constructs while
learning and the enjoyment of school. highlighting the need to expand our understanding
of how sociability self-concept relates to other self
The central finding of the study was that the
mechanisms within the school setting.
influence of exposure on concern was moderated by
sociability self-concept. That is, the prediction of Limitations
concern by exposure was stronger among students Several limitations should be noted. First, this study
with low sociability self-concept and weaker for was conducted in a single suburban middle school,
those reporting high sociability. Sociability self- and although the results are consistent with other
concept, thus, appeared to be a protective factor, studies of peer aggression, replication with a diverse
in that exposure was less predictive of concern for sample of middle grades students would strengthen
those with high sociability self-concept. This finding the findings reported here. Further, similar to many
parallels research focusing on social support. For investigations of adolescents, this research relied
example, Malecki and Demaray (2004) identified on anonymous self-administered surveys. Although
social support as a buffer against negative outcomes self-report measures do tap the perceptions of those
for student victims of bullying. They further being studied, these young adolescents reported their
demonstrated a strong link between perceptions perceptions, which may or may not concur with what
of self and the frequency and importance of social the adults in this educational setting would have
support (Demaray, Malecki, Ruegar, Brown, & reported. Future research might include reports of
© 2013 Association for Middle Level Education 7
RMLE Online— Volume 36, No. 7
aggressive behavior and disorder as noted by adults or Bokhorst, C. L., Sumter, S. R., & Westenberg, P. M.
from official school records or police calls for service. (2010). Social support from parents, friends,
classmates, and teachers in children and
Another limitation is the cross-sectional nature of the
adolescents aged 9 to 18 years: Who is perceived
data; conclusions are limited to temporal associations,
as most supportive? Social Development, 19(2),
with causal inferences remaining beyond the
417–426. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9507.2009.00540.x
scope of this study. Finally, given the nature of the
Boxer, P., Edwards-Leeper, L., Goldstein, S. E.,
variables under study, students may have responded
Musher-Eizenman, D. R., & Dubow, E. F.
inaccurately, for example to impress others with their
(2003). Exposure to “low level” aggression in
exposure or to hide concern. If this was the case,
school: Effects on aggressive behavior, future
social desirability bias may have confounded the
expectations, and perceived safety. Violence and
results presented here.
Victims, 18, 691–704. Retrieved from Research
Library Document ID: 1664790631
Conclusion
Burnham, J. J. (2009). Contemporary fears of children
and adolescents: Coping and resiliency in the 21st
This study provides one step toward developing
century. Journal of Counseling & Development,
an understanding of the influence of sociability
87(1), 28–35.
self-concept on adolescents’ perceptions of school
Brophy-Herb, H. E., Lee, R. E., Nievar, M. A.,
safety. Compared with other groups, adolescents
& Stollak, G. (2007). Preschoolers’ social
are especially susceptible to fluctuations in self-
competence: Relations to family characteristics,
concept (Parker, 2010). This developmental stage
teacher behaviors and classroom climate. Journal
is characterized by multiple biological and social
of Applied Developmental Psychology, 28,
changes (Eccles et al., 1993), and educators may
134–148. doi: 10.1016/j.appdev.2006.12.004
misjudge the effect of exposure on concern about
Champoux, J. E., & Peters, W. S. (1987). Form, effect
aggression by not considering sociability self-
size, and power in moderated regression analysis.
concept. Social self-concept is a key construct, as it
Journal of Occupational Psychology, 60,
influences middle grades students’ interactions with
243–255.
teachers, peers, and others in the school environment
Chaplin, W. E. (1991). The next generation of
and the students’ approach to conflict resolution
moderator research in personality psychology.
(Peetsma, Hasher, van der Veen, & Roede, 2005).
Journal of Personality, 59, 143–178. doi:
The current study examined sociability self-concept
10.1111/1467¬6494.ep9107221715
as a factor that can be targeted through school-based
Cheek, J. M., & Buss, A. H. (1981). Shyness and
interventions to reduce the risk of concern about
sociability. Journal of Personality and Social
aggression in suburban middle schools. Many types
Psychology, 41, 330–339.
of violence prevention programs currently exist for
Consortium on the School-based Promotion of Social
middle grades students (Farrell, 2009). However,
Competence. (1996). The school-based promotion
implementing supportive programs that include
of social competence. In R. J. Haggerty, L. R.
sociability self-concept could eliminate the need for
Sherrod, N. Garmezy, & M. Rutter (Eds.), Stress,
school personnel to identify or potentially stigmatize
risk , and resilience in children and adolescents:
young adolescents with high levels of exposure to
Processes, mechanisms, and interventions (pp.
school aggression.
268–316). New York, NY: Cambridge University
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