Continuity and change in children's involvement in bullying was examined across the transition to middle school in relation to externalizing and internalizing behavior problems in fifth grade and peer affiliations in fifth and sixth grades. The sample consisted of 533 students (223 boys, 310 girls) with 72% European American, 25% African American, and 3% Other. Although externalizing and internalizing behavior problems in fifth grade were related to bullying involvement in sixth grade, the prediction of stability and desistance in bullying and victimization status was enhanced by information about students' peer group trajectories. Furthermore, peer group trajectories uniquely explained the emergence of bullying and victimization in middle school.

Directed consultation is presented as a professional development framework to guide and support teachers in the implementation of evidence-based interventions that involve contextual and process-oriented approaches designed to be incorporated into daily classroom management. This approach consists of four components: pre-intervention observations and interviews with school professionals, professional development workshops, online training modules, and team- and individual-level implementation meetings. In the current study, directed consultation was used to train sixth-grade teachers to use the Supporting Early Adolescent Learning and Social Support (SEALS) program, a multicomponent intervention model, to promote productive and supportive classroom contexts during the transition to middle school. The current report involved classroom observations in 14 schools (7 interventions, 7 controls) as part of a broader cluster-randomized control trial. A total of 144 classrooms were observed in late fall of the sixth grade during ongoing professional development training activities and again in the spring at the completion of the SEALS training. As compared with control classrooms, teachers in intervention classrooms used more positive feedback and less negative feedback and redirection. Furthermore, teachers in intervention classrooms provided more effective use of classroom structure, feedback to students, behavior management, communication with students, groups and social dynamics, and motivation strategies. Results are discussed in terms of implications for professional development activities aimed at enhancing classroom management.

Objective The present study used a cross-sectional design to examine the relations among youth anxiety symptoms, positive and negative peer interactions, and social skills. Also examined was the mediating role of social skills in the relations between youth anxiety symptoms and positive and negative peer interactions. Youth sex and age were examined as moderators. Method The sample consisted of 397 children and adolescents (M = 10.11 years; 53.4% boys; 74.8% Hispanic Latino) referred to an anxiety disorders clinic. Anxiety symptoms, positive and negative peer interactions, and social skills were assessed using youth and parent ratings. Results Structural equation modeling results indicated that for youth ratings only, youth anxiety symptoms were negatively related to positive peer interactions controlling for primary social phobia and comorbid depressive disorders. For both youth and parent ratings, youth anxiety symptoms were positively related to negative peer interactions and negatively related to social skills. Also for both youth and parent ratings, social skills mediated the relations between youth anxiety symptoms and positive and negative peer interactions. For parent ratings only, the effects of youth anxiety symptoms and social skills on peer interactions were significantly moderated by youth age. Youth sex was not a significant moderator using youth and parent ratings. Conclusions Findings suggest difficulties with social skills and peer interactions are problematic features of youth referred for anxiety problems. Findings highlight the need to improve understanding of anxiety symptoms, social skills, and peer interactions in this population.