The social context of young children's peer victimization

The goal of this study was to investigate differences in the social context of peer victimization for preschoolers and kindergarteners. Data were collected from 168 children. For preschoolers, neither social acceptance nor friendships were significantly related to peer victimization. Instead, playing with peers and exposure to aggressive peers were associated with higher rates of peer victimization. For kindergarteners, exposure to aggressive peers also contributed to the risk for peer victimization, but being liked by peers and having friends were inversely related to victimization, thereby providing a buffering effect. The developmental implications of these findings are discussed.