A new national study has shown that, despite the opinion of many parents and teachers, school uniforms do not have any effect on the behavior or attendance of students in general.
But students who attended schools that required school uniforms reported lower levels of “school belonging” in fifth grade than students in schools without uniforms.
“Many of the main arguments about why school uniforms are good for student behavior are not supported by our sample,” says Arya Ansari, lead author of the study and assistant professor of humanities at Ohio State University.
School uniform was not associated with any difference in bullying or social anxiety in children. But those who were forced to wear a uniform reported lower levels of school affiliation than those who attended schools with no uniform requirements.
