The Relationship Between Social Competence and Achievement in Elementary School Children

A significant correlation between academic achievement and peer popularity has long been established in the educational literature. Nonetheless, comparisons between high- and low-status children have often ,failed to take achievement into account. In this study, low-achieving third- and fourth-grade boys of low sociometric status were compared to higher achieving boys of high sociometric status. Results indicated that a revision of a previously used social knowledge interview method elicited high levels of prosocial responding by all groups and no significant differences between groups. Results of two teacher-rating scales indicated that differences between high- and low-status children of comparable achievement levels approached but did not reach significance. However, children who were low in both achievement und sociometric status were rated as significantly loss competent by their teachers. The teacher-rating scale data suggest that achievement is a factor to be considered when examining social status differences between children. Possible explanations regarding the role of achievement in affecting social status differences, along with implications for further research, are discussed.