ABSTRACT
A compelling feature of child and adolescent problem behavior is that it is often performed in reaction to or in the company of peers. Early studies of delinquent behavior indicated that the peer dynamic underlying delinquent behavior was so ubiquitous that it was not worth further study in understanding the etiology of delinquent behavior (Healy, 1927). Indeed, that has been the key issue in the study of child and adolescent problem behavior across disciplines: Are peer dynamics an epiphenomenon of the problem or are they etiologically relevant?
