Best Friends, Worst Enemies: The Same-Sex Friendships of Year 10 Girls.

Abstract

Bullying is a major concern for school counsellors, and has been shown to have an adverse effect on young people's mental health. There is a significant group of girls in mid-adolescence who are at risk of developing mental health problems. Among the signs of distress that arise for adolescents, girls' friendship issues are often presented to school counsellors. Overseas research shows that girls' same-sex friendships are influenced by various factors, including behaviour similar to bullying. This type of bullying is invisible because it occurs within the friendship group. A pilot study of New Zealand Year 10 girls' perceptions of their same-sex friendships found evidence of behaviours associated with bullying. Same-sex friendships are marked by support, but also by uncertainty and conflict, with sanctions against help-seeking from adults. A larger study to investigate this area would assist with identifying more precisely the features of bullying behaviour. Implications for counsellors are discussed, in light of the need to provide the best possible support for a group that is at risk in terms of their well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] Copyright of New Zealand Journal of Counselling is the property of New Zealand Association of Counsellors and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)