This study, with 64 gifted students (grades 4-8) and 432 nongifted peers, found that, although gifted boys were the most popular group, gifted girls were the least popular. Gifted boys were perceived by peers to be physically attractive, less aggressive, more creative, and smarter than other children. (Author/DB)

Peer nomination and peer rating procedures are reviewed with regard to their relevance to assessing children's social acceptance and social status in school settings. Strengths, limitations, and potential applications of peer nomination and peer rating sociometric methods are discussed. A new method of capitalizing on the relative strengths of…

Residential programming has become an important treatment modality for adolescents with psychiatric disturbances. The importance of peer relations in treatment settings suggests a need for an objective assessment of these relations. Sociometric procedures were used to study the peer relationships of adolescents in a 15-bed residential treatment…

This study examined fourth- and fifth-grade girls' cognitions of their relationally aggressive peers as a function of their own relationally aggressive and sociometric status. Findings indicated that relationally aggressive girls tended to display a relatively cautious and wary social cognitive style in relationally provocative social situations.…

This study examined peers' first impressions formed of elementary-age boys with either learning disabilities (LD), attention deficit disorders (ADD), or both. Physical attractiveness data were gathered, and situational demands varied. Results indicated that boys with either LD or ADD were devalued relative to controls on several dependent…

Measures of the social and academic competence of 73 children with learning disabilities in grades 3-6 indicated that subjects differed from children without disabilities on virtually all indexes of academic competence, regardless of social status. Most social differences were linked to the child's peer status, independent of disability.…

Adolescents (n=173) rated the academic and social characteristics of a male peer who was videotaped as a highly competent student and as an average student. Students judged the competent target as likely to be more successful in academic subjects, more socially acceptable, and a better leader than the less competent peer. (Author/JDD)

This analysis of third and fourth graders suggests that enemy relationships are common, often of short duration, and partially reflective of negative behavior patterns between boys and girls in elementary school. (Contains 4 tables.)

Researchers have been interested in studying the correlates and reciprocity of peer acceptance across various cultures. Tenth grade students in a Saudi Arabian suburban high school completed social desirability scales to examine the relationship between the acceptance of class members by individual students and the acceptance of individual…

Teachers and peers rated retarded children on the dimensions of misbehavior and academic performance. Perceived academic incompetence was associated with educable mentally retarded children's level of social acceptance, whereas perceived misbehavior was associated with social rejection by peers. Amount of exposure to nonretarded children did not…

Two studies of nursery school children examined the relationship between friendships and sociometric judgments of social status. (Author/BB)

The social status of 1,053 middle-school students was investigated. Students with learning disabilities received lower scores on teacher rating scales and a self-rating questionnaire, and received more negative and fewer positive votes on a peer survey. For all students, attractiveness and athletic ability highly correlated with positive peer…

Describes a study based on the premise that social variables should be considered along with cognitive variables when children are grouped. Changes in sociometric status and self-image of students in grades 4, 5, and 6 were measured over a three year period. (GO)

The effect of reading difficulties and antisocial behavior on peer rejection and popularity was studied with 198 lower-class boys, grades 1 and 2. Poor readers who were stable and conformed to classroom requirements were no more rejected than good readers who conformed; however, they were less popular. (Author/CP)

A model is presented for assessing students with learning disabilities suspected of having social difficulties. Categories for assessment are described, including affective status, self-efficacy, social status, social skills, and the absence of destructive behaviors. Examples of assessment measures are provided for each category and the model's…