Abstract
This study examined trajectories of shyness-sensitivity and the contributions of peer relationships to these trajectories in Chinese children. Participants were 1061 school-age children (537 boys), initially in fifth grade (Mage = 11 years), in China. Longitudinal data on shyness-sensitivity were collected from peer assessments once a year for four years. In addition, peer nomination data on peer acceptance-rejection and mutual friendship were collected in the initial study. Four distinct shyness-sensitivity trajectories were identified: Low-Stable, Low-Increasing, Moderate-Decreasing, and High-Stable. Children with high peer acceptance scores were more likely to be in the High-Stable and Moderate-Decreasing trajectories than in the Low-Stable and Low-Increasing trajectories. The analysis of predictors of the within-trajectory growth rate indicated that children who were more liked by peers increased their shyness-sensitivity more slowly within the Low-Increasing trajectory and that children with mutual friendship involvement decreased their shyness-sensitivity more slowly within the Moderate-Decreasing trajectory. The results suggested that positive relationships might serve to attenuate developmental changes of shyness-sensitivity within these trajectories. The results were discussed in the Chinese context.
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This research was supported by grants from the Key Research Base of the Humanity and Social Sciences Section of the Ministry of Education of China (16JJD840001) and the General Program of the Humanity and Social Sciences Section of the Ministry of Eduction of China (18YJA190009).
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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
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The study was approved by the review boad of Shanghai Normal University.
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Chen, X., Fu, R., Li, D. et al. Developmental Trajectories of Shyness-Sensitivity from Middle Childhood to Early Adolescence in China: Contributions of Peer Preference and Mutual Friendship. J Abnorm Child Psychol 47, 1197–1209 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-018-00507-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10802-018-00507-0