Social environmental predictors of children's adjustment in elementary school classrooms

Relationships between qualities of the perceived social environment and children's adjustment were examined in 30 second- to fourth-grade classrooms. Based on Moos' conceptual framework, social environment was assessed from both teachers' and children's perspectives. There was little agreement between the two views. Nine teacher- and peer-rated adjustment variables were used as criterion measures in multiple regression analyses which controlled for the potential confounding influence of grade level and family income. The main substantive findings were that peer sociometric ratings were more positive at lower grade levels and in classes rated by children as high in Order and Organization; teachers rated less acting-out behavior in classes seen by children as high in Affiliation, Teacher Control, and Task Orientation; and teachers rated children as more likeable in classes seen by Children as high in Teacher Control and Competition. Implications of the study's findings for future primary preventive efforts to engineer health-promoting classroom environments are discussed.