Peer Safety Climate and Socioemotional Adjustment among Key Stage 1 Learners
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21423516Keywords:
Classroom climate, Key Stage 1 learners, Peer safety climate, Quantile regression, School adjustment, Socioemotional adjustmentAbstract
This study explored the relationship between peer safety climate and socioemotional adjustment among Key Stage 1 learners at Villa Flor Elementary School in Cauayan City. A cross-sectional multi-informant relational design was employed, using a child-friendly pictorial scale to measure peer safety climate and a teacher-rated checklist to assess socioemotional adjustment. Participants were selected through proportionate stratified random sampling across grade levels and class sections. Data were summarized using medians and interquartile ranges, while quantile regression with classroom-clustered bootstrap confidence intervals was applied to determine whether peer safety climate predicted adjustment at different levels of learner functioning. Results showed moderate levels of peer safety climate and socioemotional adjustment, with overall medians of 2.65 and 2.68, respectively. Protection from intimidation and fair handling of disagreements received the lowest ratings, while response to peer conflict emerged as the weakest dimension of socioemotional adjustment. Peer safety climate significantly predicted socioemotional adjustment at the 25th, 50th, and 75th percentiles. The strongest association was observed among learners with lower adjustment, indicating that children experiencing greater socioemotional difficulties were more responsive to variations in peer safety. The findings underscored the importance of consistent protection from intimidation, structured conflict resolution, supportive peer routines, and classroom-based socioemotional learning. Strengthening these practices may improve emotional regulation, cooperative behavior, classroom participation, and constructive responses to peer conflict among young learners.
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