Relationships between peer acceptance, peer victimization, and self-esteem in adolescents were examined in a sample of 392 eighth grade students(189 boys and 203 girls). Data were collected using questionnaires regarding peer acceptance(social prefere...
Relationships between peer acceptance, peer victimization, and self-esteem in adolescents were examined in a sample of 392 eighth grade students(189 boys and 203 girls). Data were collected using questionnaires regarding peer acceptance(social preference and social status), peer victimization, and self-esteem of adolescents. High social preference was positively related to self-esteem. Social preference varied as a function of social status both in boys and in girls. Popular boys had higher self-esteem than neglected and rejected boys; popular girls had higher self-esteem than neglected girls, who had higher self-esteem than rejected girls. The more boys and girls were victimized by peers, the lower their self-esteem. The higher their social preference, the less they were victimized. Rejected boys and girls experienced peer victimization much more than either popular or neglected boys and girls.