Peer relations at primary school

This report by the Centre for Research on the Wider Benefits of Learning
explored friendship patterns and children’s general relationships with their peers between the ages of 8 and 10 and examined how children’s early development (ages 3 to 4) may predict their later development in terms of social behaviour including likelihood of becoming a bully.

Key Points:
- Three quarters of the sample belonged to one of three positive friendship groups - positive, many friends (48 per cent), positive but fallout with friends (18 per cent), and positive but few friends (10 per cent). Normal 0 false false false

- The remaining quarter of the sample had poor social relationships characterised by few friends and a higher prevalence of bullying and or victimisation than the other groups.

- Victims and bully/victims had poorer social relationships than other children, and were more likely to have limited early language skills and social development. Difficulties (e.g. low self-esteem, depression, antisocial behaviour) had existed from age 3 to 4 through primary school years and were most acute for bully/victims.

- Socio-demographic influences on friendship were complex. Children from the positive, many friends cluster were more likely have privileged backgrounds and victims more disadvantaged backgrounds. However, bully/victims did not significantly differ from the other clusters in terms of income and maternal education, although their parents were less likely to be married.

- Some friendship-patterns had a strong gender bias with positive, few friends and bully/victims more likely to be boys. The other groups were more balanced.