A Longitudinal Examination of Children's Friendships Across Racial Status and Gender and Their Intergroup Prosocial Behavior.

Abstract

In this research, we examined (a) the primary effects of intergroup friendships: whether having a friend of a different gender/racial status benefits children's gender/racial status-based prosocial behavior and (b) the secondary transfer of intergroup friendships: whether friendships from one domain (e.g., gender) would extend to improved prosocial behavior toward outgroup members of another domain (e.g., race). Participants were 603 third- to fifth-grade students (M_age = 9.06, SD = .90; 47.9% girls; 52.4% racially minoritized). Peer nominations of prosocial behavior and friendships were collected twice in 1 year. Longitudinal path analyses focused on intergender friendships showed support for both the primary and secondary transfer effects on enhanced intergroup prosocial behavior. Analyses focused on racial status showed the primary effects of these friendships on enhanced interracial prosocial behavior, whereas the secondary transfer effects were less consistent. These findings provide a basis for interventions to promote equity in prosociality toward diverse others.