A Developmental Cascade Model of Prosocial Behavior, Academic Competence, and Peer Exclusion Across Preadolescence

Abstract:The current research used longitudinal data from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (N = 1,103) to examine the developmental autoregressive cascades of prosocial behavior, academic competence, and peer exclusion in Grades 3–6. The cascade paths revealed that Grade 3 prosocial behavior was negatively associated with Grade 4 peer exclusion and positively associated with Grade 4 academic competence; then, Grade 4 peer exclusion in turn negatively influenced Grade 5 prosocial behavior; Grade 4 academic competence in turn positively influenced Grade 5 prosocial behavior; finally, Grade 5 prosocial behavior was negatively associated with Grade 6 peer exclusion and positively associated with Grade 6 academic competence. Implications for developmental cascade models, progressions, and preventive interventions were discussed.