13.3 Status in the Peer Group

• Rejection by peers is associated with a range of developmental outcomes for children

• These relations can hold independent of any effects of having, or not having, close friends 

Measurement of Peer Status 

• Most common – ask children to rate how much they like or dislike each of their classmates 

• May ask children to nominate classmates who they like the most or the least, or whom they do or do not play with 

Sociometric status: the degree to which a child is liked or disliked by their peers 

• Classifies children into one of five groups

1. Popular 

2. Rejected 

3. Neglected 

4. Average

5. Controversial

• Over relatively short periods such as weeks or a few months, children who are popular or rejected tend to remain so, whereas children who are neglected or controversial are likely to acquire a different status 

• Over longer periods, children’s sociometric status is more likely to change 

• Sociometric stability for rejected children is generally higher than for popular, neglected, or controversial children and may increase with the age of the child 

Why are some children linked better than others? 

• Physical attractiveness 

• Early childhood through adolescence, children who are rated as objectively attractive by observers – much more likely to be popular – less likely to be victimized by peers 

• Athleticism is also related to high peer status, albeit more strongly for boys than for girls 

• Children’s social behavior, personality, cognitions about others and goals when interacting with peers 

Popular Children

Popular children: rated by peers as being both accepted and impactful and thus have high status in the peer group 

• Skilled at initiating interaction with peers/maintaining positive relationships with others 

• Perceived as cooperative, friendly, sociable, helpful, and sensitive to others 

• Regulate their own emotions and behaviors

• Not necessarily the most likable in their peer groups rather have other attributes the give them power  

• Above average in aggression and use their aggressiveness to obtain their goals 

Rejected Children 

Rejected children: tend to differ from more popular children in their social motives and in the way they process information related to social situations 

• Motivated by goals such as “getting even” with others or “showing them up” 

• More trouble finding constructive solutions to difficult social situations 

• Suggest fewer strategies – more hostile, demanding and threatening 

• Anxious and depressed – rated lowest by teachers on their behavioral competence 

• Theory of mind is less developed – greater difficulty understanding others’ feelings and behaviors 

• Two categories: overly aggressive and withdrawn 

Aggressive-rejected children 

• 40% to 50% 

Aggressive-rejected: especially prone to hostile and threatening behavior, physical aggression, disruptive behavior, and delinquency 

• Engage in relational aggression 

• At risk for becoming even more aggressive over time and for engaging in delinquent behavior and to exhibit symptoms of ADHD, conduct disorder and substance abuse 

Withdrawn-rejected children 

• 10%-25%

Withdrawn-rejected: socially withdrawn, wary, timid, and socially anxious 

• Are frequently victimized by peers, feel isolated, lonely, and depressed 

• Middle to late elementary school – tend to be disliked, alienated from the group over time 

• Part of a negative feedback loop

Neglected Children 

• Research suggests that children who are withdrawn with peers but are relatively socially competence tend to be merely neglected 

Neglected children: they are not nominated as either liked or disliked by peers 

• Less sociable/disruptive than average children but are likely to back away from peer interactions that involve aggression

• Perceive that they receive less support from peers, yet they are not particularly anxious about their social interactions 

• Rated by teachers as being as socially competent as popular children 

• They appear to be neglected primarily because they are simply not noticed by their peers 

Controversial Children 

Controversial Children: liked by numerous peers and disliked by numerous others 

• Tend to have characteristics of both popular and rejected children

• Very socially active/group leaders

• Tend to be viewed by peers as arrogant and snobbish, which could explain why they are disliked by some peers even if they are perceived as having high status in the peer group 

Cross-Cultural Similarities and Differences in Factors Related to Peer Status 

• Rejected children tend to be aggressive and disruptive while popular children tend to be prosocial and to have leadership skills 

• Rejected children especially who are aggressive more likely to have academic difficulties

• Higher rates of school absenteeism and lower grade point averages 

• Students’ classroom participation is lower during periods in which they are rejected 

• The tendency of rejected children to do relatively poorly in school worsens across time 

• Certain cultural and historical differences in the characteristics associated with children’s sociometric status

• One notable example involving both types of differences is the status associated with shyness among chinese children 

• Chinese children who were shy, sensitive and cautious or inhibited in their behavior were viewed by teachers as socially competent and as leaders, and they were liked by their peers 

• Traditionally values self-effacing, withdrawn behavior and chinese children are encouraged to behave accordingly 

• Western cultures place great value on independence and self-assertion, withdrawn children in these cultures are likely to be viewed as weak, needy and socially incompetent