Abstract
Although much research exists regarding the transition into junior high school, surprisingly few studies have focused on the move into high school. The present study employed a short-term longitudinal design to assess the adjustment of adolescents as they made the transition from junior high to high school. Changes in adolescents' sense of autonomy, perceived stressors, social support, sense of school membership, grade point average (GPA), and attendance were assessed. Coping strategies were also considered at each time point. Also, because parents who feel better about themselves may offer more support to their adolescents, parents of the adolescents in the study completed measures assessing their stressors and coping mechanisms. Results indicated that the adolescents did experience significant changes during the initial transition into high school that were related to GPA and sense of school membership. Perceived support from parents was also related to adolescents' adjustment to the transition. The study bridges a gap in the literature on school transitions by addressing the transition to high school in light of adolescent and parent variables. Implications for practices by school personnel and future research suggestions are provided.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
REFERENCES
Barone, C., Aguirre-Deandreis, A. I., and Trickett, E. J. (1991). Means-end problem-solving skills, life stress, and social support as mediators of adjustment in the normative transition to high school. Am. J. Commun. Psychol. 19: 207–225.
Berndt, T. J. (1982). The features and effects of friendship in early adolescence. Child Develop. 53: 1447–1460.
Berndt, T. J. (1989). Obtaining support from friends during childhood and adolescence. In Belle, D. (ed.), Children's Social Networks and Social Supports. Wiley, New York.
Berndt, T. J., Miller, K. E., and Park, K. (1989). Adolescents' perceptions of friends' and parents' influence on aspects of their school adjustment. J. Early Adolesc. 9: 419–435.
Blyth, D. A., Simmons, R. G., and Bush, D. (1978). The transition into early adolescence: A longitudinal comparison of youth in two educational contexts. Sociol. Educat. 51: 149–162.
Blyth, D. A., Simmons, R. G., and Carlton-Ford, S. (1983). The adjustment of early adolescents to school transitions. J. Early Adolesc. 3: 105–120.
Carver, C. S., Scheier, M. F., and Weintraub, J. K. (1989). Assessing coping strategies: A theoretically based approach. J. Personal. Social Psychol. 36: 267–283.
Cotterell, J. L. (1982). Student experiences following entry into secondary school. Educat. Res. 24: 276–302.
Cotterell, J. L. (1992a). School size as a factor in adolescents' adjustment to the transition to secondary school. J. Early Adolesc. 12: 28–45.
Cotterell, J. L. (1992b). The relation of attachments and supports to adolescent well-being and school adjustment. J. Adolesc. Res. 7: 28–42.
DeLongis, A., Coyne, J. C., Dakof, G., Folkman, S., and Lazarus, R. S. (1981). Relationship of daily hassles, uplifts, and major life events to health status. Health Psychol. 1: 119–136.
DeLongis, A., Folkman, S., and Lazarus, R. S. (1988). The impact of daily stress on health and mood: Psychological and social resources as mediators. J. Personal. Social Psychol. 54: 486–495.
Felner, R. D., Ginter, M., and Primavera, J. (1982). Primary prevention during school transitions: Social support and environmental structure. Am. J. Commun. Psychol. 10: 277–290.
Felner, R. D., Primavera, J., and Cauce, A. M. (1981). The impact of school transitions: A focus for preventive efforts. Am. J. Commun. Psychol. 9: 449–459.
Fenzel, L. M. (1989). Role strains and the transitions to middle school: Longitudinal trends and sex differences. J. Early Adolesc. 9: 211–226.
Fenzel, L. M., and Blyth, D. A. (1986). Individual adjustment to school transitions: An exploration of the role of supportive peer relations. J. Early Adolesc. 6: 315–329.
Fuligni, A. J., and Eccles, J. S. (1993). Perceived parent-child relationships and early adolescents' orientation toward peers. Develop. Psychol. 29: 622–632.
Gecas, V., and Seff, M. (1990). Families and adolescents: A review of the 1980's. J. Marriage Family 52: 941–958.
Goodenow, C. (1993). The psychological sense of school membership among adolescents: Scale development and educational correlates. Psychol. Schools 30: 79–90.
Harter, S., Whitesell, N. R., and Kowalski, P. (1992). Individual differences in the effects of educational transitions on young adolescent's perceptions of competence and motivational orientation. Am. Educat. Res. J. 29: 777–807.
Hess, R. S., and Copeland, E. P. (1997). Stress. In Bear, G. C., Minke, K. M. and Thomas, A. (eds.), Children's Needs II: Development, Problems, and Alternatives. National Association of School Psychologists, Bethesda, MD.
Hirsch, B. J., and DuBois, D. L. (1992). The relation of peer social support and psychological symptomatology during the transition to junior high school: A two-year longitudinal analysis. Am. J. Commun. Psychol. 20: 333–347.
Hirsch, B. J., and Rapkin, B. D. (1987). The transition to junior high school: A longitudinal study of self-esteem, psychological symptomatology, school life, and social support. Child Develop. 58: 1235–1243.
Hollingshead, A. B. (1975). Four factor index of social status. Unpublished manuscript. Yale University, Department of Sociology, New Haven, CT.
Juvonen, J. (1997). Peer relations. In Bear, G. C., Minke, K. M., and Thomas, A. (eds.), Children's Needs II: Development, Problems, and Alternatives. National Association of School Psychologists. Bethesda, MD.
Kanner, A., Feldman, S., Weinberger, D., and Ford, M. (1987). Uplifts, hassles, and adaptational outcomes in early adolescents. J. Early Adolesc. 7: 371–394.
Kelly, J. A., and Hansen, D. J. (1987). Social interactions and adjustment. In Van Hass, V. B., and Hersen, M. (eds.), Handbook of adolescent psychology. Pergamon Press, New York.
Kimmel, D. C., and Weiner, I. B. (1985). Adolescence: A Developmental Transition. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
Kulka, R. A., Kahle, L. R., and Klingel, D. M. (1982). Aggression, deviance, and personality adaptation as antecedents and consequences of alienation and involvement in high school. J. Youth Adolesc. 11: 261–279.
Lamborn, S. D., and Steinberg, L. (1993). Emotional autonomy redux: Revisiting Ryan and Lynch. Child Develop. 64: 483–499.
Lord, S. E., Eccles, J. S., and McCarthy, K. A. (1994). Surviving the junior high school transition: Family processes and self-perceptions as protective and risk factors. J. Early Adolesc. 14: 162–199.
Mitman, A. L., and Packer, M. J. (1982). Concerns of seventh-graders about their transition to junior high school. J. Early Adolesc. 2: 319–338.
National Association of Secondary School Principals. (1985). How Fares the Ninth Grade? A Day in the Life of a Ninth Grader. NASSP, Reston, VA.
Pardeck, J. A., and Pardeck, J. T. (1990). Family factors related to adolescent autonomy. Adolescence 25: 311–319.
Phelps, S. B., and Jarvis, P. A. (1994). Coping in adolescence: Empirical evidence for a theoretically based approach to assessing coping. J. Youth Adolesc. 23: 359–371.
Powell, A. G., Farrar, E., and Cohen, D. K. (1985). The Shopping Mall High School: Winners and Losers in the Educational Marketplace. Houghton-Mifflin, Boston.
Procidano, M. E., and Heller, K. (1983). Measures of perceived social support from friends and from family: Three validation studies. Am. J. Commun. Psychol. 11: 1–24.
Resnick, M., Bearman, P., Blum, R., Bauman, K., Harris, K., Jones, J., Tabor, J., Beuhring, T., Sieving, R., Shew, M., Ireland, M., Bearinger, L., and Udry, J. (1997). Protecting adolescents from harm: Findings from the National Longitudinal Study on Adolescent Health. JAMA 278(10): 823–832.
Silverberg, S. B., and Steinberg, L. (1987). Adolescent autonomy, parent-adolescent conflict, and parental well-being. J. Youth Adolesc. 16: 293–313.
Silverberg, S., and Steinberg, L. (1990). Psychological well-being of parents with early adolescent children. Develop. Psychol. 26: 658–666.
Simmons, R. G., Blyth, D. A., Van Cleave, E. F., and Bush, D. M. (1979). Entry into early adolescence: The impact of school structure, puberty, and early dating on self-esteem. Am. Sociol. Rev. 44: 948–967.
Simmons, R. G., Burgeson, R., Carlton-Ford, S., and Blyth, D. A. (1987). The impact of cumulative change in early adolescence. Child Develop. 58: 1220–1234.
Simmons, R. G., Rosenberg, F., and Rosenberg, M. (1973). Disturbance in the self-image at adolescence. Am. Sociol. Rev. 38: 553–568.
Stark, L. J., Spirito, A., Williams, C. A., and Guevremont, D. C. (1989). Common problems and coping strategies I: Findings with normal adolescents. J. Abnormal Child Psychol. 17: 203–212.
Steinberg, L., Brown, B., and Dornbusch, S. (1996). Beyond the Classroom: Why School Reform Has Failed and What Parents Need to Do. Simon and Schuster, New York.
Steinberg, L., and Silverberg, S. B. (1986). The vicissitudes of autonomy in early adolescence. Child Develop. 57: 841–851.
Tyszkowa, M. (1990). Coping with difficult school situations and stress resistance. In Bosma, H., and Jackson, S. (eds.), Coping and Self-Concept in Adolescence. Springer-Verlag, New York.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Isakson, K., Jarvis, P. The Adjustment of Adolescents During the Transition into High School: A Short-Term Longitudinal Study. Journal of Youth and Adolescence 28, 1–26 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021616407189
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1021616407189