The Faces and Facets of Competition in Adolescent Friendship Triads

• In Event: Poster Session 13
  In Poster Session: PS 13 Topic - Social Relationships

Abstract

Competition is sometimes antithetical to the formation and maintenance of friendships or contributes to aggressive behaviors. This is a developmental concern as research shows that both poor quality friendships and aggression can lead to maladjustment and negative outcomes. Yet competition may be a natural, common occurrence, especially during adolescence as youth rely on social comparison to examine identity. Further, some groups seem to enjoy and embrace it. Past research on adolescent competition is limited because 1) observational research (vs. self-report) in diverse activities is scarce, 2) few studies distinguish among forms of competition, and 3) idiographic analytic approaches have not been used to illuminate heterogeneity among groups in forms and outcomes. This study addressed these issues by examining observational data to distinguish between two distinct forms of competition and identify underlying patterns of group behaviors through latent profile analyses.

Participants were 101 adolescent triads of same-sex friends and acquaintances (53 females) between 10 and 16 years (M = 13.20, SD = 1.32). Triads participated in six activities that varied in whether they discouraged or encouraged competition. Reliable group-level coding distinguished competition focused on demonstrating superiority over others and competition focused on self-improvement and task mastery, as well as the level of positive and negative affect.
Preliminary analysis showed that groups were highly sensitive to task requirements, avoiding competition when incentives existed to cooperate, but not when the task encouraged competition. When groups approached competition as mastery, competition was not associated with negative affect and sometimes associated with positive affect. Competing was negative when it involved competing to win, but this also depended on task and group. The complex relationship between competitive behavior and affect suggest the need for a more nuanced view of competitive interactions.

Latent profile analysis of group behavior in the most intense task indicated four distinct profiles of response to competitive settings. Competing to excel levels varied little between groups and was determined to be a poor indicator of profile membership. Therefore, the final LPA model was constructed based on levels of competing to win behavior and positive and negative affect. The agreeable avoiders (25%) and pouters (24%) both avoided this negative type of competition, but the pouters still displayed negative affect. Among the most highly competitive groups, the negative competitors (23%) were also high in negative affect while the engagers (28%) were not. Profile membership varied by sex, showing that boys were more likely to compete and girls to avoid it.

Together, these results provide caution against generalizations of adolescent competition and friendships. The need for distinguishing between types of competitive behavior is clear and helps to explain conflicting results of previous studies. Results suggest that superiority-oriented competition should be a focus of future research, as it is more likely to be related to negative experiences. However, group responses to this behavior still vary and should be explored further. Finally, this study provides further evidence of sex differences in competitive behaviors and responses to competitive interactions with friends.

Authors

• Kate Blocker, Other
  Presenting Author

• Jeffrey G Parker, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa
  Non-Presenting Author

• Mengya Xia, Pennsylvania State University
  Non-Presenting Author