Children who are excluded from activities by their peers are more likely to withdraw from classroom activities and suffer academically, according to a recent study in the Journal of Educational Psychology published by the American Psychological Association (APA).
A longitudinal study, conducted over a five-year period following 380 students from age 5-years old to 11-years old, found that children who are rejected by their peers have more trouble engaging in school activities than children who are not rejected by their peers. This kind of rejection can increase the likelihood that children are victimized or excluded by peers and impair a child's ability to interact with other children, participate in classroom activities and participate in the social context of the classroom. It can result in long-term maladjustment that may endure throughout a child's school years.
Despite the recent emphasis that has been placed on bullying and victimization in school children," exclusion, although not as visible as verbal or physical forms of abuse, may be particularly detrimental to children's participation in many school activities," said lead author Eric Buhs, Ph.D., of the University of Nebraska. Relative to other types of peer relationships, peer group rejection appeared to be one of the strongest predictors of a child's likely or unlikely success in academics. Those children who suffered rejection were more likely to avoid school and were less engaged in the classroom setting." Once children experience this kind of maltreatment or rejection from their peers, they avoid most classroom peer activities," added Dr. Buhs.