Marlene J. Sandstrom

A Developmental Perspective on Peer Rejection: Mechanisms of Stability and Change

This study examines factors associated with the relative stability of peer rejection among elementary school-aged children. Forty-four initially rejected children (some of whom improved their social status while others remained rejected over a 2-year period) were recruited from a larger sociometric sample. Prospective analyses were conducted to determine whether peer nominated aggression and childrens perceptions of their own status in fourth grade were predictive of status improvement by the end of fifth grade. In addition to prospective analyses, initially rejected children and their mothers were invited to participate in a retrospective interview about their social experiences over the past 2 school years. Results of prospective and retrospective analyses suggested that perceived social status, participation in extracurricular activities, locus of control, and parental monitoring were all positively related to status improvement among initially rejected children. Surprisingly, aggressive behavior also was positively related to status improvement among initially rejected boys.

Likeable versus popular: Distinct implications for adolescent adjustment

In the current study, 466 children completed a peer nomination survey assessing both perceived and sociometric popularity at the end of the 5th grade. Measures of behavior problems were assessed through a composite of peer-, teacher- and self-reports at the end of the 8th grade. Examination of the unique concurrent associations of each popularity type with peer nominated social characteristics in 5th grade demonstrated that sociometric popularity was positively associated with prosocial behavior and inclusive behavior, while perceived popularity was positively associated with overt and relational aggression. In addition to emerging as distinct conceptual constructs, these two dimensions of popularity also demonstrated unique associations with adjustment over time. Sociometric popularity in the 5th grade was associated with lower levels of externalizing behavior problems 3 years later, while perceived popularity was associated with higher levels of these problems over time. Interestingly, high levels of perceived popularity in the 5th grade were associated with less internalizing symptoms over time for boys, while high levels of sociometric popularity were associated with less internalizing symptoms over time for girls.

Children's Appraisal of Peer Rejection Experiences: Impact on Social and Emotional Adjustment

In the current study, 95 children of different social status classifications (rejected, neglected, average, and popular) were exposed to hypothetical vignettes designed to assess their ‘generalized’ rejection sensitivity (GRS) and a mild social rejection experience designed to assess their ‘on-line’ rejection sensitivity (ORS). Measures of internalizing and externalizing problems were assessed through a composite of peer- , parent- , and self-reports. As expected, sociometric rejection was associated with more internalizing and externalizing problems. More importantly, both types of rejection sensitivity were associated with internalizing and externalizing problems after controlling for the effect of peer rejection. High levels of GRS were associated with more internalizing problems for both boys and girls. In addition, rejection sensitivity emerged as a significant moderator of the relation between rejection and externalizing problems. The nature of the moderating effect varied as function of type of rejection sensitivity and gender. Rejected girls with low GRS and rejected boys with high ORS displayed the highest levels of externalizing behavior problems.

A link between mothers' disciplinary strategies and children's relational aggression.

This study examines the association between maternal disciplinary strategies and childrens level of relational aggression, and then compares these associations with those found with overt aggression. Eighty-two 4th graders (aged 9-1 I years) completed peer nomination measures of relational and overt aggression, and their mothers completed a questionnaire designed to assess their use of disciplinary strategies (e.g. authoritarian, authoritative, permissive). Consistent with prior research, parental reliance on authoritarian strategies was positively associated with childrens level of overt aggression, especially among boys. There was also a trend towards a positive association between authoritarianism and relational aggression among both boys and girls. In addition, this study is the first to show a positive association between maternal permissiveness and relational aggression. This association appears to be specific to relational, and not overt aggression, and emerge more strongly for girls than boys. The implications of these results for understanding the developmental underpinnings of relational aggression are discussed.

Social context of bullying: Do misperceptions of group norms influence children's responses to witnessed episodes?

This study explores the association between norm misperception and behavioral responses to witnessed bullying episodes. We hypothesized that pluralistic ignorance (PI) could explain individual differences in behavioral responses. According to PI theory, children who believe that victims deserve protection may inhibit defending behavior if they assume their attitudes are out of step with their peers. A total of 446 fourth and eighth graders described their personal attitudes and perceptions of peers’ attitudes about bullying, as well as their behavioral responses when they witnessed a bullying episode. Consistent with PI theory, children perceived their personal attitudes as more prosocial than those of their classmates. Further, misperception of group norms was associated with childrens reports of behavioral responses to bullying; children who overestimated peers’ approval of bullying reported lower levels of defending the victim and higher levels of joining in. This material is based on work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0841897. The authors are grateful to the students, teachers, and school administrators who participated in this study. We extend special thanks to Meredith Craven, Meg Macdonald, and Colleen Fitzpatrick, who helped to orchestrate the data collection process.

Defense mechanisms and psychological adjustment in childhood.

The association between maturity of defense use and psychological functioning was assessed in a group of 95 elementary school children. Defense mechanisms were measured using a valid and reliable storytelling task, and psychological adjustment was assessed through a combination of parent and self-report questionnaires. Correlational analyses indicated that children who relied on the developmentally immature defense of denial reported higher levels of self-rated social anxiety and depression and received higher ratings of parent-reported internalizing and externalizing behavior problems. However, children who made use of the developmentally mature defense of identification exhibited higher scores on perceived competence in social, academic, conduct, athletic, and global domains. Significantly, there was no relationship between children’s use of denial and their level of perceived competence or between children’s use of identification and their degree of maladjustment.

Life After High School Adjustment of Popular Teens in Emerging Adulthood

This project examines the adjustment sequelae of perceived popularity beyond high school, and the moderating role of relational aggression (RA) in this process. Yearly sociometric measures of popularity and RA were gathered across grades 9–12 for a sample of 264 adolescents in a lower-middle-class high school. In addition, data on post–high school adjustment were collected from three yearly self-report assessments of depression, psychopathology, workplace victimization, and risk behavior. Results revealed a positive association between popularity in high school and risk behaviors in emerging adulthood, after controlling for prior levels of risk behaviors. In addition, the combination of low popularity and high RA was associated with higher levels of adjustment problems for boys across all adjustment measures, after controlling for prior levels of adjustment. Finally, RA in high school emerged as double-edged sword for girls. For girls, high levels of RA in high school were associated with lower levels of depressive symptoms, but higher levels of workplace victimization in emerging adulthood. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.

Unanimous versus partial rejection: How the number of excluders influences the impact of ostracism in children

Previous research has shown that ostracism-the experience of being ignored and excluded-has negative effects on all of us, young and old. Using a Cyberball paradigm, the present research replicates the effects of ostracism on the moods (anger, anxiety, happiness, and anger) and fundamental needs (belongingness, control, meaningful existence, and self-esteem) of children (Study 1) and then extends the literature by examining the role of the number of ostracizers and inclusive members in this process by randomly assigning children to conditions varying in degree of ostracism (Study 2). Results of both studies showed that experiencing ostracism strongly and negatively affected all moods and fundamental needs-with the exception of anxiety. Study 2 in addition showed that the ratio of excluders to inclusive group members had different effects across outcomes. In all cases, complete ostracism produced the worst outcomes, suggesting that the presence of even a single ally reduces childrens distress. For sadness, unanimous ostracism seemed particularly toxic. In some cases, facing two ostracizers produced significantly worse outcomes than only one, suggesting that consensual rejection might drive the negative effects on happiness, and sense of belonging, control, and meaningful existence. For self-esteem, only one ostracizer (in the presence of two inclusive members) was sufficient to induce a negative effect. Aggr. Behav. 43:190-203, 2017.