Prosocial Behavior between Friends in Middle Childhood and Early Adolescence

Abstract

Fourth, sixth, and eighth graders were paired either with a close friend or with a classmate whom they neither strongly liked nor strongly disliked. The pairs of children were observed as they did two tasks that provided them with opportunities for generous or helpful behavior toward each other. On one task, children distributed rewards to themselves and to their partner. On the second task, children were allowed to help their partner get rewards when the partner had been placed at a disadvantage. The results showed an increase with age in the differences between friends' and classmates' behavior. Eighth graders were more generous and more helpful toward friends than toward other classmates, but sixth and fourth graders treated friends and classmates similarly. After doing the tasks, eighth graders also reported that they thought their friends less often competed with them and more often tried for equality in rewards than other classmates. Attributions about the partner's motives were similar for friends and classmates at sixth and fourth grade. The age differences in behavior and motives are compared with current theories of the development of friendship.