Effects of Classroom Embeddedness and Density on the Social Status of Aggressive and Victimized Children

• NCJ Number: 229432
• Journal: Journal of Early Adolescence Volume: 30 Issue: 1 Dated: February 2010 Pages: 76-101
• Author(s): Hai-Jeong Ahn; Claire F. Garandeau; Philip C. Rodkin
• Date Published: February 2010
• Length: 26 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Report (Study/Research)
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: For additional articles in this special issue see NCJ-229429-31 and NCJ-229433-36.

Annotation

This study examined the effects of classroom embeddedness and density on the perceived popularity and social status of a sample of aggressive and victimized children.

Abstract

This study investigated the independent and interacting effects of classroom-level embeddedness (i.e., hierarchical vs. egalitarian) and classroom density on the perceived popularity and social preference of aggressive and victimized 3rd-4th grade students (N = 881). A cohesive blocking procedure was used to compute embeddedness. Multilevel analyses indicated that aggressive children achieved much higher perceived popularity in hierarchical classrooms with high density. While children with high victimization scores were unpopular across classrooms, they were least unpopular in egalitarian classrooms with high density. Furthermore, aggressive children were more disliked in low-density classrooms, and victimized children were more disliked in hierarchical classrooms. Implications for educational management of classroom social structures are discussed.(Published Abstract)