Reciprocal Associations Between Interpersonal and Values Dimensions of School Climate and Peer Victimization in Elementary School Children

Abstract

We examine longitudinal relations among children's and parents' reports of peer victimization and their perceptions of school climate dimensions reflecting school interpersonal relationships (relationships among children and their teachers and peers, and of parents and principals) and values (fairness and equity of access to resources). Children were in Grades 3 and 4 at Time 1 (Mage = 9.32, SDage = .74; 49% boys). Bidirectional influences of school climate and reports of peer victimization were investigated in path models across grade (Time 1 to Time 2) and within a grade (Time 2 to Time 3). Child and parent reports of school climate dimensions showed considerable stability. Hypothesized reciprocal relationships between each of the school climate dimensions and peer victimization were significant. Child-reported frequency of parent involvement in school activities was associated with lower levels of peer victimization within a school year. Parent perceptions of involvement in school activities and the schools' connection with the community were unrelated to the children's reports of peer victimization. Children's negative cognitions or "worldviews" coupled with peer victimization may fuel problems with school connectedness, safety, and help seeking. Findings shed light on possible pathways for reducing peer victimization by leveraging specific aspects of the social climate within schools.

Parent, Child, and Teacher Reports of School Climate as Predictors of Peer Victimization, Internalizing and Externalizing in Elementary School

“…There is a need to expand this ecological view of school climate to clarify targets for improving the safety of our schools (Manvell, 2012) and the impact of positive school climate on child outcomes. Consistent with a growing body of research (Espelage et al, 2014;Leadbeater et al, 2014;Wang et al, 2014), our findings suggest that working to improve school relationships between students and teacher and students themselves, and to enhance students' experiences of fairness and equity in sharing resources may be key to improving children's social, emotional, and behavioral outcomes. Active responses on the part of school staff that support victimized children and their families are crucial to stop the escalating negative school climate perceptions that can preoccupy withdrawn children who may feel marginalized from school activities.…”

“…Past research has also shown that more vulnerable children may have experiences at school that affect their general beliefs about relationships with their peers and teachers (and hence their school climate ratings). For example, children who experience higher levels of peer rejection and aggression over time come to believe that their peers may not be trustworthy (Ladd et al, 2014) and victimized children hold more negative views of school climate (Leadbeater et al, 2014;Nickerson et al, 2014). Chronic victimization may leave children feeling that their experiences are normative across the school population and reduce the likelihood that they will seek help.…”

“…While these measures are often aggregated at the classroom or school level, there is growing evidence that individual variation in children's experiences of school climate may be important. For example, research shows that chronically victimized children may report particularly negative experiences of school climate (Leadbeater et al, 2014;Nickerson, Singleton, Schnurr, & Collen, 2014).…”

“…Most child measures focus on dimensions that reflect the quality of relationships with teachers and other students as well as their views about fairness, order and discipline, and equity in access to resources (Zullig, Koopman, Patton, & Ubbes, 2010). Only a handful of studies have used ratings of school climate from alternate sources such as parents or teachers (Espelage, Polanin, & Low, 2014;Leadbeater, Sukhawathanakul, Smith, & Bowen, 2014;Mitchell et al, 2010;Waasdorp, Bradshaw, & Duong, 2011) and only one study collected data from all three sources simultaneously (Waasdorp, Pas, O'Brennan, & Bradshaw, 2011). This research focuses attention on the potential importance of teacher (Brand, Felner, Seitsinger, Burns, & Bolton, 2008;Espelage et al, 2014) and parent experiences (Schueler et al, 2014) of school climate and argues that these individuals' experiences of school climate may reflect distinct ecologies or spheres of influence that differ in important ways (Waasdorp et al, 2011a, b).…”

Introduction to Special Issue in Memorial of Nicki R. Crick: Development of Peer Victimization in Children and Adolescents

“…Leadbeater, Sukhawathanakul, Smith, and Bowen (2014) conducted a study to examine the prospective relations among peer victimization measures and children's perceptions of school climate dimensions (e.g., equity of access to resources within the school) in Canadian schools. The authors examined and found evidence for bidirectional associations between school climate dimensions and peer victimization.…”