The primary goal of the present study was to describe the range, types, and quality
(in terms of exposure to aggressive peers) of social activity settings in which
young children typically have contact with peers. We also examined whether
participation in these settings varied as a function of child sex and age, and
family demographic characteristics. Subjects were 277 preschoolaged children. On the
basis of detailed accounts of their mothers, activity setting measures were derived
separately for ages 2-4 years (era 1) and ages 4-5 years (era 2). Each of seven
activity settings (e.g. neighbourhood, day care, organised playgroups) was rated for
frequency of participation and frequency of exposure to aggressive peers. Children
had the greatest amount of peer contact and were exposed to aggressive peers most
often in the neighbourhood setting. In contrast, children participated least
frequently in structured playgroup settings, and these settings were least likely to
contain aggressive peers. Children from lower SES and single-parent families were
more likely to be involved in settings (especially neighbourhoods) containing
aggressive peers. These findings suggest that one mechanism through which risk for
behaviour problems among children in lower SES and single-parent families may
operate is increased exposure to activity settings in which aggression occurs regularly.
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