The article it refers to can be found at http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/parenting/wp/2014/06/12/the-middle-school-cool-kids-are-not-alright/
Tweens may be desperate to be considered “cool”, but recent research studies show that certain popularity-seeking behaviors in tweens are associated with less success later in life. University of Virginia psychology professor Joseph Allen says that tweens who associate social success with popularity and physical attractiveness often rely on techniques that they believe are “mature” -- things like early romantic behavior or acts of minor delinquency, like skipping school or sneaking into R-rated movies. “They look like they’re on the fast track to adulthood, but it ends up being a dead end,” Allen says.
Speaking to the Washington Post about his study, which was recently published in the journal Child Development, Allen says that “in general, being popular and being accepted by your peers is associated with good outcomes…[but t]here’s a subgroup that kind of cheats — they’re trying to appear more mature than they are.” His survey, which studied 184 seventh- and eighth-graders and then followed up with them ten years later, showed that, in their early 20s, “these kids had 45 percent higher rates of alcohol and drug problems and 22 percent higher rates of criminal behavior; their ratings of social competency — their ability to have normal and positive relationships with others — were 24 percent lower than their peers.”
Allen calls these kids “social strivers,” and says that they’re considered very socially adept at a young age, but that the advantage wears off as their peers catch up and then overtake them. “It’s not that they’re regressing, but they’re not advancing,” he says. “Behaviors that seem cool for a 13-year-old to engage in don’t seem quite as cool when you’re in high school.” The desire to appear mature includes an increased chance that they will become involved in drinking or drug use, but as classmates get older and experiment -- and then leave behind -- these behaviors, the social strivers keep at it. Because “[t]hey hit on this strategy and they stick to it,” their social behavior doesn’t continue to evolve, resulting in the disadvantages later in life.
Allen’s findings echo those of Nancy Galambos’ 2003 study from the University of Alberta, which also examined tweens, in her case, kids in grade six or nine. Her findings classified kids into three categories: mature, those who engaged in age-appropriate behavior and felt comfortable with themselves; immature, those who engaged in behavior a bit behind some of their peers; and “pseudo-mature”, those who act “old” for their age out of desire to impress. Galambos identified a group of pseudo-mature behaviors, including early romantic and sexual activity, minor delinquency, and a focus on the physical appearance of friends, that was highly related to difficulties with social functioning later in life.
The good news is that parents can prevent
their kids from getting caught in the trap of social striving and pseudo-mature
behavior. Allen encourages parents to . . . to speak frankly to them about maturity and readiness to
engage in a variety of behaviors. And if your tween or young teen seems
“younger” than her peers? Allen says, “That’s not only fine, but it’s good.”
