The experience of bullying among secondary school students

Victims and Perpetrators of Bullying in Physical Education Lessons: The Role of Peer Support, Weight Status, Gender, and Age in Polish Adolescents

Physical education is a space in which adolescents may become the victims or perpetrators of bullying. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between being a victim or perpetrator of physical, verbal, or social bullying in physical education, and peer support, gender, weight status, and age. The sample consisted of 2, 848 adolescents (1, 512 girls and 1, 336 boys) aged 14-16 from Poland. The participants' body mass index was determined based on their measured height and weight. The Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children questionnaire was used to assess whether the participants were victims or perpetrators of bullying. Peer support during physical education was assessed using the modified Teacher and Classmate Support Scale. The analysis of logistic regressions revealed that low peer support increased the probability of being the victim of physical, verbal, and social bullying (odds ratio [OR], 1.58-2.91) and becoming a perpetrator of bullying (OR, 1.14-1.37) in physical education. Additionally, being overweight increased the likelihood of being a verbal victim (OR, 1.39) and being obese raised the probability of becoming social victim (OR, 1.60). Boys more often experienced (OR, 1.12-2.06) and caused bullying (OR, 1.25-1.89) than girls. Moreover, victims were mainly younger (14-year-old) students (OR, 1.16-1.21), while perpetrators were more often older (15- and 16-year-old) adolescents (OR, 1.12-1.20). This research indicated that peer support can play a key role in preventing bullying in physical education. Physical education teachers should pay special attention to unpopular and rejected students because they most often become the victims and perpetrators of bullying. Creating a climate that fosters the development of high peer support might protect adolescents from becoming a victim-and a perpetrator-of bullying in physical education.

The experience of bullying among adolescents receiving mental health care: an interpretative phenomenological analysis

BACKGROUND

Bullying, the most prevalent form of abuse among adolescents, is associated with emotional and behavioural problems as well as psychiatric morbidity. Moreover, it has been shown that adolescents with previous mental health problems are at increased risk of being bullied and that the psychopathological repercussions of bullying are greatest among them. However, little is known about the experience of bullying in adolescents receiving treatment from mental health services. The aim of this study was to explore the subjective experience of bullying in adolescents receiving mental health care.

METHODS

The study was developed in the context of a French multicentre research program and employed an exploratory phenomenological approach. A purposeful sampling strategy was used to select adolescents who had experienced bullying (according to the Olweus criteria) and who were able to relate their experiences clearly. In-depth, semistructured interviews with participants were conducted; written transcriptions of these interviews were analysed using thematic analysis.

RESULTS

Twenty-one adolescents (age range: 12-17 years; 13 girls) participated in the study. The analysis indicated a three-axis structure: (1) negative emotions and violent feelings, describing adolescents' fear, sadness, aggression against themselves, and generalized mistrust; (2) isolation and loneliness, underlining the need to take refuge within oneself and the experiences of rejection, helplessness, and secret-keeping; and (3) self and identity repercussions, including experiences of shame and lowered self-esteem, identity questions, and a vision of bullying as a life experience.

CONCLUSIONS

The results of this study may have practical implications for clinicians: (1) a situation of bullying should be sought when an adolescent is seen for unexplained externalized behavioural misconduct; (2) low levels of emotional expression in a bullied adolescent may warn about associated self-harm; (3) a bullied adolescent's tendency to hide this situation from his or her parents may reflect underlying family-related vulnerability; and (4) the phenomenological analysis showed potential particularities in the assumptive world of these adolescents and suggested that relationality may play a crucial role in their experiences. These results suggest incentives to design specific individual and group therapeutic interventions for bullied adolescents with significant levels of social withdrawal, including family support. Additional research is necessary to improve our understanding of the psychopathological and intersubjective aspects of bullying in adolescents.

Integrative Review of Qualitative Research on the Emotional Experience of Bullying Victimization in Youth

The emotional experience of bullying victimization in youths has been documented primarily using quantitative methods; however, qualitative methods may be better suited to examine the experience. An integrative review of the qualitative method studies addressing the emotional experience of bullying victimization was conducted. From MEDLINE, Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature, PubMed, Education Information Resource Center, and PsycINFO, 14 English-language, peer-reviewed, qualitative studies were reviewed. Applying the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme, the quality of the studies was deemed sufficient. The range of emotional experiences reported included sadness, decreased self-esteem, embarrassment, fear, suicidal thinking, anger, feeling hurt, loneliness, powerlessness, helplessness, and confusion. Overall, these results were similar to those obtained from quantitative method studies, apart from the feeling of embarrassment. This integrative review confirmed and expanded the knowledge of emotional experiences of bullying victimization.

A Systematic Review of Research Strategies Used in Qualitative Studies on School Bullying and Victimization

School bullying and victimization are serious social problems in schools. Most empirical studies on bullying and peer victimization are quantitative and examine the prevalence of bullying, associated risk and protective factors, and negative outcomes. Conversely, there is limited qualitative research on the experiences of children and adolescents related to school bullying and victimization. We review qualitative research on school bullying and victimization published between 2004 and 2014. Twenty-four empirical research studies using qualitative methods were reviewed. We organize the findings from these studies into (1) emic, (2) context specific, (3) iterative, (4) power relations, and (5) naturalistic inquiry. We find that qualitative researchers have focused on elaborating on and explicating the experiences of bully perpetrators, victims, and bystanders in their own words. Directions for research and practice are also discussed.

No safe haven: locations of harassment and bullying victimization in middle schools

BACKGROUND

Given that adolescent bullying victimization is a significant concern for secondary education and adolescent development, identifying school contexts in which victimization is most likely to occur is salient.

METHODS

An anonymous online survey assessed the prevalence of being harassed or bullied in various locations within 20 middle schools (grades 5-9) in New Jersey and New York (N = 10,668). Seven types of bullying-related victimization (teased in an unfriendly way, called hurtful names, physically abused, excluded from a group to hurt feelings, belongings taken/damaged, threatened to be hurt, and negative rumors spread) were examined in 7 locations where each type of victimization could occur (classroom, lunchroom, hallways, gym, playground, bus, or bathroom).

RESULTS

Prevalence of victimization types ranged from 4% to 38% depending on location. Prevalence of overall victimization was equal or greater in classrooms compared with other school locations (highest prevalence rates in hallways, classrooms, and lunchrooms), regardless of school demographic characteristics. Victimization in classrooms compared with other school settings was most highly associated with feelings of being unsafe.

CONCLUSIONS

Vigilant attention to bullying is needed across all school environments and especially in the classroom context, which may mistakenly be perceived as a more protected area. Indeed, middle school classrooms are not safe havens.