Summary
The goal of Study 1 was to examine the association between children’s classroom seating and peer
status. Children’s average physical distance to classmates in the teacher-arranged classroom seating
was negatively associated with likeability but not with popularity. The closer children sat to the center
of the classroom at Time 1, the more they were liked by their peers at Time 1 and Time 2. Children’s
physical distance to specific classmates was associated with both liking and popularity. When two
classmates sat closer to each other at Time 1, they liked each other more throughout the school year.
They then also saw each other as more popular, but only at the beginning of the year.