Early adolescent antisocial behavior and peer rejection: a dynamic test of a developmental process.

Evidence supports the hypothesis that adolescer~t peer groups play a significant role in the genesis of youth antisocial behavior (Dishion & Patterson. 2006). A longstanding interest in research focused on individual clilferences in teen exposure to deviant peer groups is the notion that high-risk youth aggregate because of their comrnon rejection within social contexts, such as the school environment (Cairns, Neckerman, & Cairns, 1989; Dodge et al., 2003; Girford-Smith, Dodge, Dishion, & McCord, 2005; Olson, 1992). We refer to this clynamic process as the confluence hypothesis (Dishion, Patterson, & Griesler, 1994). The Funclamental dy~~ain ics are generaled by two interrelated processes, selection and influeixce: