A Cross-Cultural Examination of Peer Status and Social Correlates in the United States and China

Abstract:Popularity and likability—two measures of adolescent peer status—have been examined frequently within Western cultures but relatively rarely within Eastern cultures. This study offered a cross-cultural comparison of adolescent peer status to examine whether these constructs and their correlates vary between the United States and China. The study consisted of a sample of adolescents from China and the United States (N = 864, Mage = 15.95; 50.5% female). Adolescents completed sociometric peer nominations assessing popularity, likability, and five behavioral correlates: aggression, victimization, prosocial behavior, sad affect, and anxious behavior. Results suggest that popularity may be more differentiated from likability in the United States than in China. More specifically, the association between popularity and likability was stronger in China, and the behavioral correlate profiles of these peer constructs was more similar within China than within the United States. Another notable finding was that popularity was significantly positively associated with aggression in the United States but was significantly negatively associated with aggression in China. Results are discussed through the lens of cultural differences in the meaning of peer status.