Fostering Social Interest in Schools for Long-Term and Short-Term Outcomes.

The authors examine social interest as a one- vs. two-dimensional construct, examine recalled youth experiences as predictors of adult social interest and feelings of social inadequacy, and describe an Adlerian-based program designed to guide teachers and counselors to foster social interest. In Study 1, social liking and social empathy were identified as two independent dimensions of social interest. In Study 2, adult social liking is correlated with having had supportive interpersonal relationships with teachers, family social support, community connectedness, and an absence of peer rejection and bullying during middle-school years. The authors also found that adult social empathy was strongly correlated with having had supportive interpersonal relationships with teachers and community connectedness during middle-school years. In Study 3, adult social anxiety was predicted strongly by peer rejection/lack of close friends and also by parental devaluing and lack of parental responsivity. Additionally, either peer connectedness or family responsivity served as a buffer in the presence of other risk factors. In Study 4, the authors describe an Adlerian-based individual education project guiding teachers and counselors in school initiatives designed to foster social interest. Three prototype initiatives are described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]