Peer victimization and adjustment: Moderation by perceptions of same-race and other-race classmates’ behavior

Drawing on the “social misfit” hypothesis, this study tested whether peer victimization is more predictive of maladjustment when children have many same-race classmates who they view as low in aggression. Also accounted for were children’s race, the racial composition of the classroom, and children’s perceptions of other-race peers. Data were collected in the fall, winter, and spring of a school year from 1,424 4 th and 5 th grade children ( M age = 10.06; SD age = 0.67; Range age = 8.43–13.03; 683 girls; 741 boys; 39.61% Black; 60.39% White) in the Southeastern United States. Measures included children’s ratings of the aggressiveness of their participating Black and White classmates; teacher-reports of depressive symptoms, anxiety, and social withdrawal; and peer-reports of peer victimization, aggression, and prosocial behavior. Consistent with the social misfit hypothesis, when children viewed same-race classmates as low in aggression, peer victimization was more strongly associated with internalizing problems in the fall for Black children ( R 2 : 0.05–0.16) and with heightened anxiety in the spring for White children with many same-race classmates ( R 2 = 0.09). Although some protective effects of viewing other-race classmates as aggressive emerged, associations with heightened anxiety ( R 2 : 0.06–0.09) underscored the need to promote positive interracial relationships to optimize children’s mental health.