A Longitudinal Social Network Analysis of Peer Influence, Peer Selection, and Smoking Behavior Among Adolescents in British Schools
A Longitudinal Social Network Analysis of Peer Influence, Peer Selection, and Smoking Behavior Among Adolescents in British Schools
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DOI：
10.1037/a0026876
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发表时间：
2012-07-01
影响因子：
4.2
通讯作者：
Moore, Laurence
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Mercken, Liesbeth;Steglich, Christian;Moore, Laurence
目的：青少年朋友吸烟行为的相似性可能是在行为相似性的基础上选择朋友造成的，也可能是由于影响过程导致行为变得与朋友相似所致。本研究的主要目的是利用纵向社会网络分析的新方法，理清选择和影响过程，并研究这些过程随时间的变化。方法：样本包括来自11所英国学校的1716名青少年(基线平均年龄为12.17岁，SD=0.38)，参与ASSIST(A Stop Smoke In School Trial)研究的对照组。这项设计是纵向的，每隔一年观察三次。在每一次观察中，参与者被要求报告他们的吸烟行为和友谊网络。分析了基于参与者的友谊网络和吸烟行为协同进化模型(友谊提名和吸烟同时发生变化的统计模型)，该模型能够模拟观察之间可能发生的变化，允许研究替代影响和选择机制，并避免违反观察数据统计独立性的假设。结果：青少年根据相似的吸烟行为选择朋友的倾向比朋友的影响对吸烟行为的预测作用更强。基于吸烟的朋友选择所解释的吸烟行为相似性的比例随着时间的推移而增加，而由朋友的影响解释的比例则下降。结论：预防吸烟不应仅仅关注社会影响，还应考虑选择过程以及青春期这两个过程随时间的变化。
Objective: Similarity in smoking behavior among adolescent friends could be caused by selection of friends on the basis of behavioral similarity, or by influence processes, where behavior is changed to be similar to that of friends. The main aim of the present study is to disentangle selection and influence processes and study changes over time in these processes using new methods of longitudinal social network analysis. Methods: The sample consists of 1716 adolescents (mean age at baseline = 12.17 years, SD = .38) in 11 British schools participating in the control group of the ASSIST (A Stop Smoking in School Trial) study. The design was longitudinal with three observations at one-year intervals. At each observation, participants were asked to report on their smoking behavior and friendship networks. An actor-based model of friendship network and smoking behavior coevolution (a statistical model for the simultaneously occurring changes in friendship nominations and smoking) was analyzed, capable of modeling possible changes occurring between observations, allowing alternative influence and selection mechanisms to be investigated, and avoiding the violation of assumptions of statistical independence of observed data. Results: Adolescent's tendency to select friends based on similar smoking behavior was found to be a stronger predictor of smoking behavior than friends' influence. The proportion of smoking behavior similarity explained by smoking-based selection of friends increased over time, whereas the proportion explained by influence of friends decreased. Conclusions: Smoking prevention should not solely focus on social influence but also consider selection processes and changes in both processes over time during adolescence.