Concurrent and short-term longitudinal associations between peer victimization and school and recess liking during middle childhood.
BACKGROUND
Prior studies outside of the UK have shown that peer victimization is negatively associated with school adjustment.


OBJECTIVE
To examine concurrent and short-term longitudinal associations between peer victimization (physical, malicious teasing, deliberate social exclusion, and malicious gossiping) and two measures of school adjustment (school liking and recess liking), and test if these associations were moderated by year and sex.


METHODS
A UK sample of 429 pupils in Years 4, 5, and 6 (Grades 3, 4, and 5, respectively, in USA) participated in the Autumn/Winter (Time 1) and 189 of these provided follow-up data during the Spring/Summer (Time 2) of the same school year.


METHODS
Peer nominations of victimization, and self-reports of school adjustment were collected in individual and small group interviews.


RESULTS
At time 2 (but not Time 1), victimization predicted concurrent school liking among year 6 pupils but not among year 4/5 pupils, and victimization predicted recess liking among all pupils. Victimization also predicted changes in School liking among boys (not girls) and among Year 6 (not Year 4/5) pupils, and victimization predicted changes in recess liking among all pupils.


CONCLUSIONS
The associations between victimization and poor school adjustment found elsewhere were replicated with this British sample. The implications of these results for children's social adjustment at school were discussed.
Boulton
Michael J
MJ
Department of Psychology, University of Chester, Chester, UK. m.boulton@chester.ac.uk
Chau
Cam
C
Whitehand
Caroline
C
Amataya
Kishori
K
Murray
Lindsay
L
D000328:Adult; D000374:Aggression / Q000523:psychology*; D001290:Attitude; D019548:Crime Victims / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010379:Peer Group; D010988:Play and Playthings; D012574:Schools; D012917:Social Adjustment; D012963:Sociometric Techniques; D006113:United Kingdom