Peer Networks, Behavior Contingencies, and Children\u27s Engagement in the Classroom

Natural behavior contingencies were examined as a mechanism by which peers can influence children\u27s school motivation in classroom interactions. Sequential observations in a fifth grade classroom identified contingencies that children experienced from peer group members, nonmembers, and the teacher as consequences of their behavior; peer groups were identified with a Composite Social Map procedure. The more students were motivated, the more likely they were to receive approval from peer group members following their active on-task behaviors. The less students were motivated, the more they received disapproval from nonmembers following their disruptive off-task behaviors. These contingency patterns constitute learning conditions that can be seen as a mechanism through which a child\u27s peer group members can influence that child\u27s school motivation