Compensatory Support Among Children's Peer Relationships: School Friends, Nonschool Friends, and Sibilings

학령기아동의 친구관계에 따른 대체지지에 관한 연구

This study examined compensatory patterns of support among three types of children's peer relationships: school friendships, nonschool friendships, and sibling relationships. Specifically, this study investigated (1) the degree to which children with unsupportive school friendships turn to nonschool friends and siblings to compensate for the provisions they lack from school friends, and (2) the potential protective effects of substitute support on such children's adjustment. Subjects for this study were drawn from a sample of 297 sixth graders attending 3 public schools in Seoul. 6 teachers and 594 of parents of subjects also participated in the study. Subjects completed their questionnaires in their own classroom. The teachers and parents completed their forms within 1 week. The data were analyzed by two-way ANOVA and $Scheff{\acute{e}}$ test. The results of this study were as follows: (a) When compared with the average, aggressive children and isolated children perceived their school friendship as low support. (b) Isolated, aggressive, and average children differed in their perceptions of support from nonschool friends and their favorite siblings. (c) The children who have unsupportive school friendships experienced greater socioemotional difficulties than did children with supportive school friendships. (d) The extent that sibling and nonschool friends provided the support lacking in their school friendships, isolated and aggressive children experienced diminished emotional distress.