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The present study attempted to examine the comparative gender differences in relation to character strengths, social competence, and peer relations among 558 university students of Pakistan and Russia including both men and women (age range = 20-29 years). Appraisal protocols of Brief Strength Test (Peterson, 2004), Social Competence Scale (Shahzad, 2001), and Index of Peer Relations (Hudson, 1996) were employed to assess major constructs of the study. Results showed that character strengths and social competence positively predicted peer relations in Pakistani and Russian samples. Findings also proposed that gender significantly moderates the relationship between character strengths and peer relations. Findings further indicated that overall women displayed more character strengths as compared to men across both samples. In addition, Pakistani women displayed better social competence as compared to men; whereas nonsignificant gender differences were found in Russian sample. On the contrary, Pakistani and Russian men displayed better peer relations as compared to women. Cross-cultural comparison revealed that Russian students were higher on the strengths of justice, temperance, and transcendence as well as social competence as compared to Pakistani students; conversely nonsignificant cultural differences were found on the strengths of wisdom, courage, and humanity. Similarly, there were nonsignificant cultural differences on peer relations.
Keywords: Character strengths, social competence, peer relations, university students
Generally, character strengths are characterized by two defining features; firstly, these are relatively stable and enduring personality attributes that could be manifested through cognitive, emotional and behavioral domains; secondly, these strengths bear moral values which are beneficial to oneself as well as to others. According to Peterson and Seligman (2004), character strengths are considered as the rudimentary essential components which play a pivotal role in developing the goodness, thriving, and flourishing characteristics of the humankind. These postulates are originally hypothesized by Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi (2000) based on the principles of psotive psychology, emphasizing that happiness, experiences of flow, and other flourishing tendencies are enabled by good character that enhances psychological, social and emotional adjustment (Park & Peterson, 2009; Peterson & Seligman, 2004); as well as cognitive and interpersonal skills (Louis, 2011).
Peterson and Seligman (2006) listed broader six virtues of wisdom, temperance, courage, justice, humanity, and transcendence in the classification system of values in action bearing distinctive features but also share the similarity that...