Sex differences and parallels in the development of externalizing behaviours in childhood: Boys' and girls' susceptibility to social preference among peers

J. Marieke Buil*, Hans M. Koot, Pol A. C. van Lier

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to JournalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

This study examined whether being poorly preferred by peers may partially explain why boys with oppositional behaviour develop more conduct problems than girls. Children from the general Dutch population attending regular elementary schools (N = 759, 50.3% boys) were followed annually from age 7 to 10 years. Teachers-rated externalizing behaviour and peer-nominated social preference was assessed across four waves. Autoregressive cross-lagged models indicated that oppositionality predicted increases in conduct problems. Above and beyond this direct link, oppositionality predicted low social preference in subsequent years, which in turn predicted an increase in conduct problems. In this latter pathway, sex differences were found. That is, oppositional boys were as likely as oppositional girls to show an increase in low social preference one year later. However, boys who had low social preference scores showed stronger increases in conduct problems one year later, compared to girls who had low social preference scores. Hence, developmental models of externalizing behaviour should consider the possible sex-differential impact of troublesome peer-relationships to understand the development of milder to more severe externalizing behaviours.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)167-182
Number of pages16
JournalEuropean Journal of Developmental Psychology
Volume16
Issue number2
Early online date6 Aug 2017
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 4 Mar 2019

Funding

This work was supported by Netherlands Organization for Health Research and Development [grant number 120620029], [grant number 26200002].

FundersFunder number
Netherlands Organization for Health Research and Development120620029, 26200002
Horizon 2020 Framework Programme646594

    Keywords

    • conduct problems
    • Externalizing behaviour
    • oppositional behaviour
    • sex differences
    • social preference

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