Future directions for research on the development of relational and physical peer victimization.

After several decades of research on peer victimization and associated constructs the field is poised to make a number of important discoveries and advances. More specifically, the study of peer victimization subtypes has rapidly increased since the seminal work of Crick and Grotpeter ( 1996 ) on relational and physical victimization. The current state of the field is briefly reviewed, and recommendations for future directions are provided to advance our literature.

Peer victimization and peer rejection during early childhood.

The development and course of the subtypes of peer victimization is a relatively understudied topic despite the association of victimization with important developmental and clinical outcomes. Moreover, understanding potential predictors, such as peer rejection and emotion regulation, in early childhood may be especially important to elucidate possible bidirectional pathways between relational and physical victimization and rejection. The current study (N = 97) was designed to explore several gaps and limitations in the peer victimization and peer rejection literature.

A gender-balanced approach to the study of peer victimization and aggression subtypes in early childhood.

A short-term longitudinal study during early childhood (N = 301; 155 girls; M = 44.76 months old, SD = 8.20) investigated the prospective associations between peer victimization and aggression subtypes.

Relational aggression in middle childhood predicting adolescent social-psychological adjustment: the role of friendship quality.

The present longitudinal study examined the indirect effect of 6th-grade negative friendship quality on the associations between 5th-grade relational aggression and age 15 social-psychological adjustment (i.e., depressive symptoms and risky behavior).

Relational Aggression in Women during Emerging Adulthood: A Social Process Model.

Two studies investigated potential mediators of the association between relational victimization and relational aggression. Self-report measures of aggressive behavior among peers, exclusivity, hostile attribution biases, and borderline personality disorder (BPD) symptoms were collected. In study 1, participants were 180 female emerging adults (M = 18.