Students with Exceptionalities and the Peer Group Context of Bullying and Victimization in Late Elementary School

We examined bullying and victimization in 5th grade classrooms in relation to students’ education status and peer group membership. The sample consisted of 484 participants (258 girls, 226 boys), including 369 general education students, 74 academically gifted students, and 41 students with mild disabilities. Students with mild disabilities were more likely to be perceived as being bullies by both teachers and peers. Teachers also rated students with mild disabilities significantly higher for being bullied by peers. Academically gifted students were rated by teachers as the lowest for both bullying and being bullied. Associating with aggressive or perceived-popular peers increased the likelihood of being perceived as a bully. Social isolates were more likely to be bullied than students who did not associate with perceived-popular peers who, in turn, were more likely to be bullied than students who associated with perceived-popular peers. Students with mild disabilities who had aggressive and perceived-popular associates had more peer nominations for bullying than all others. In contrast, students in general education with neither aggressive nor perceived-popular associates had the fewest peer nominations for bullying. We discuss implications for research and intervention.