Through a new window: a new look at friendship quality and adjustment during adolescence

In the present study, the quality of one's friendship with both same-sex and opposite-sex best friendships in preadolescence and adolescence was examined as having special significance for psychological development. Specifically, this study was conducted to explore the relationships among seven aspects of friendship quality (Self-Disclosure, School Help, Conflict, Shared Experience, Trust/Loyalty, Validation/Caring, and Closeness) and psychosocial adjustment (Self-Worth, Depression and Alienation), and how these relationships varied as a function of age (grade five, eight and eleven) and gender. In examining the findings, a complex pattern emerged, suggesting that the various aspects of friendship quality were differentially related to particular indices of adjustment. Moreover, the relations between friendship quality and various indices of adjustment were found to vary developmentally across the adolescent period and differed for boys and girls.Education, Faculty ofEducational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department ofGraduat