Relative Age Effects in Dutch Adolescents: Concurrent and Prospective Analyses.

Nikolaos Stavrakakis,René Veenstra,Albertine J Oldehinkel,Bertus F Jeronimus

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0128856

Abstract

The literature on relative age position effects is rather inconsistent. In this study we examined intra-classroom age position (or relative age) effects on Dutch adolescents’ school progress and performance (as rated by teachers), physical development, temperamental development (fear and frustration), and depressive symptoms, all adjusted for age at the time of measurement. Data were derived from three waves of Tracking Adolescents' Individuals Lives Survey (TRAILS) of 2230 Dutch adolescents (baseline mean age 11.1, SD = 0.6, 51% girls). Albeit relative age predicted school progress (grade retention ORs = 0.83 for each month, skipped grade OR = 1.47, both p<.001), our key observation is the absence of substantial developmental differences as a result of relative age position in Dutch adolescents with a normative school trajectory, in contrast to most literature. For adolescents who had repeated a grade inverse relative age effects were observed, in terms of physical development and school performance, as well as on depressive symptoms, favoring the relatively young. Cross-cultural differences in relative age effect may be partly explained by the decision threshold for grade retention.

Highlights

Introduction to RelativeAge “I can honestly say that insecurity was something formerly unknown to me
We observed substantial relative-age effects on school progress; relatively young adolescents repeated a grade about four times more often than the relatively old, who in turn were over 20 times more likely to skip a grade
We studied the relative-age effect bestowed upon children by an adult-imposed structuring of their worlds, a cultural artifact that may modulate the development of their innate abilities

Summary

Introduction

Introduction to RelativeAge “I can honestly say that insecurity was something formerly unknown to me. The tallest, the fastest–I thought I was Superman. It turned out this was mainly because I was born in January, older than my peers”. Children at school are assorted in same-age groups based on the month and year of birth [1,2]. Within a single classroom children may differ in age by up to 11 months. Older children have a slightly more developed physique and mind than their younger classmates [1,3]. These physical and psychological advantages may become catalyzed into different developmental trajectories through favorable peer-contrast effects [4,5]. We define developmental differences due to the age position driven peer contrast effects as relative-age effects

Methods

Results

Discussion

Conclusion