Includes bibliographical references and index.

pt. I. The nature of friendship. 1. What is friendship? : Definitions of friendship ; Theoretical perspectives on friendship ; Friendships compared to other peer relations ; Framework for the book -- 2. Studying friendship : Assessing the presence of friendship ; Questions in assessing the presence of friendship ; Assessing friendship quality ; Questions in assessing friendship quality ; Assessing the characteristics of friends ; Assessing child characteristics and the context of friendship ; Assessing interactions with friends ; Conclusions -- pt. II. The normative experience of friendship. 3. The developmental significance of friendship in childhood : Friendship as a normative experience in childhood social development ; Emotional development ; Cognitive development ; Psychosocial adjustment ; Conclusions -- 4. The developmental significance of friendship in adolescence : Friendship as a normative experience in adolescence ; Three important tasks of adolescence ; Conclusions -- pt. III. Individual differences in the experience of friendship. 5. The individuals within a friendship : Attachment and friendship ; The dark side of friendships ; Friendship and peer victimization ; Conclusions -- 6. Friendship quality : Why is friendship quality important? ; What determines the quality of a friendship? ; What are the correlates of friendship quality? ; How does friendship quality affect developmental outcomes? ; Conclusions -- pt. IV. Implications and looking forward. 7. Friendship and culture / with Emily C. Jenchura : Theoretical perspectives on culture and friendship ; Social networks and the role of friends ; Friendship features and quality ; Similarity between friends ; Conclusions -- 8. Friendship intervention : Peer relations interventions as models for friendship interventions ; Guiding principles for friendship intervention ; Conclusions -- 9. The significance of friendship : Conceptual framework ; Future research directions.