3-247 - The Social Peer Ecology in Classrooms: The Role of Students, Teachers and School-Based Interventions

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Integrative Statement

Children’s social, emotional and academic development is greatly influenced by the peer context in the classroom. This symposium will explore different facets of peer relationships and positive youth development in the school context. To adequately reduce and prevent peer victimization, teachers need to be aware of the social dynamics in the classroom and be able to recognize victims and bullies in their classroom. Teachers’ perceptions of students’ behavior and characteristics and the factors that may bias these perceptions will be addressed in the first presentation. Despite recent advances in the study of the teachers’ role in handling bullying, it is less well known which difficulties teachers themselves experience in their attempts to reduce peer victimization. A detailed overview on teachers’ needs to better prevent and reduce bullying will be given in the second presentation. One way teachers can ensure a supportive and safe environment is to change the seating arrangements around victimized students. In the third presentation, the consequences of physical closeness to a best friend and a bully for the frequency and severity of victimization as well as for victims’ feelings of comfort in the classroom will be explored. Finally, to promote positive child development, an array of social skills training programs are available, which have a significant, but small positive effect in general. In the context of evidence base practice, the effectiveness of specific treatment components used in social skills training programs will be discussed in the final presentation.

Sub Unit

• Social Relationships

Chairs

• Brechtje de Mooij, University of Amsterdam

• Marloes Denise Alexandra van Verseveld, Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences

Individual Presentations

• Teacher Attunement and Cognitive Biases in Teachers’ Perception of Bullying, Victimization and Prosociality - Presenting Author: Eleonora Marucci, University of Groningen; Non-Presenting Author: Beau Oldenburg, University of Gröningen; Non-Presenting Author: Davide Barrera, University of Turin; Non-Presenting Author: Rene Veenstra, University of Groningen; Non-Presenting Author: Marloes Hendrickx, Utrecht University

• What Do Teachers Need to Better Prevent and Reduce Bullying? A Qualitative Study - Presenting Author: Marloes Denise Alexandra van Verseveld, Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences; Non-Presenting Author: Minne Fekkes, TNO Child Health; Non-Presenting Author: Ruben G. Fukkink, University of Amsterdam; Non-Presenting Author: Ron J. Oostdam, University of Amsterdam

• Supporting Victimized Students Through Rearrangement of Classroom Seats: A Field Experiment - Presenting Author: Yvonne van den Berg, Radboud University, Nijmegen; Non-Presenting Author: William M. Bukowski, Concordia University; Non-Presenting Author: Scott D Gest, University of Virginia; Non-Presenting Author: Toon Cillessen, Radboud University

• Effective Treatment Components of Social Skills Training Programs for Children and Adolescents: A Multilevel Meta-analysis - Presenting Author: Brechtje de Mooij, University of Amsterdam; Non-Presenting Author: Minne Fekkes, TNO Child Health; Non-Presenting Author: Ron Scholte, Radboud University Nijmegen; Non-Presenting Author: Geertjan Overbeek, University of Amsterdam