Concurrent and longitudinal links between friendship and peer victimization: implications for befriending interventions

The Impact of COVID-19 on Adolescents' Mental Health in Catalonia (Spain): A Qualitative Study

This study aimed to understand the experiences of adolescents regarding the perceived impact of COVID-19 on their mental health in Catalonia (Spain). A qualitative exploratory methodology was used with a purposive sample of 30 high-school students regarding their experiences of the self-perceived impact of COVID-19 on their mental health. Data were thematically analyzed using Braun and Clarke method. Three main themes emerged from the data: (a) the challenge of living confined, (b) the footprint of COVID-19 on adolescents' mental health, and (c) school dynamics during the lockdown. The COVID-19 pandemic negatively impacted adolescents' mental health, and adolescents perceived a lack of emotional support from educational centers. Therefore, incorporating emotional support in educational centers and offering emotional self-management tools to young students should be a priority. School nurses can play an essential role in recognizing and managing emotional needs and being the natural link between educational and primary care centers.

Can Friendship Quality Buffer the Impact of Parental Phubbing on Adolescents' Gratitude? The Longitudinal Mediating Role of Basic Psychological Needs' Satisfaction

This study aims to explore the longitudinal relationship between parental phubbing and adolescents' gratitude, as well as the mediating role of basic psychological needs' satisfaction and the moderating role of friendship quality. We conducted this longitudinal study in two waves with a 7-month, and surveyed 643 Chinese adolescents and constructed a moderated mediation model. The results indicated the following: First, there is a significant negative correlation between parental phubbing and adolescents' gratitude. Second, adolescents' basic psychological needs' satisfaction mediates the relationship between parental phubbing and gratitude. Finally, friendship quality moderates the negative relationship between parental phubbing and adolescents' basic psychological needs' satisfaction and the mediating effect of basic psychological needs' satisfaction. Specifically, compared to adolescents with lower friendship quality, the negative effect of parental phubbing on basic psychological needs' satisfaction is stronger among adolescents with higher friendship quality, and the negative indirect effect of parental phubbing on gratitude through basic psychological needs' satisfaction is also stronger in these adolescents. The findings suggest that parental phubbing is a significant risk factor for decreased adolescents' gratitude, with high friendship quality adolescents being more susceptible to the impact of parental phubbing. The negative impact of parental phubbing outweighs the influence of friendship quality. This study provides insights into interventions promoting adolescents' positive development.

The bidirectional relationship between peer relationships and bullying: Evidence from cross-lagged analyses among Chinese children

BACKGROUND

In the digital age, bullying manifests in two distinct forms: traditional bullying and cyberbullying. Children's peer relationships are important predictors of bullying, and bullying in turn predicts peer relationships. However, few researchers have noted the bidirectional relationship between peer relationships and bullying.

METHODS

The present study used a two-wave cross-lagged longitudinal design to fill this gap. The potential sex differences were also examined in this relationship. The sample consisted of 527 Chinese children aged 8 to 12 years (M = 9.69, SD = .96; 53.5% female). Participants completed peer nominations for peer acceptance, peer rejection and social dominance, as well as self-reports of traditional bullying and cyberbullying.

RESULTS

Results showed that peer rejection at the first time point (T1) significantly and positively predicted traditional bullying perpetration, cyberbullying perpetration and cyberbullying victimization at the second time point (T2). Traditional bullying victimization at T1 significantly and negatively predicted peer acceptance and social dominance at T2. The results also revealed significant male and female differences. For instance, among boys, peer acceptance at T1 significantly and negatively predicted cyberbullying victimization at T2. In contrast, this relationship was not observed among girls. The present findings have important implications for understanding the cyclical relationship between peer relationships and bullying and providing practical guidance for improving peer relationships and reducing bullying.

The longitudinal associations between bullying perpetration, bullying victimization, and internalizing symptoms: Bidirectionality and mediation by friend support

Internalizing symptoms have been linked to bullying perpetration and victimization in adolescence. However, the directions of any causal relationships remain unclear, and limited research has identified the mechanisms that explain the associations. Given the salience of peer relationships during the teenage years, we examine whether perceived support from friends is one such mechanism. By using a transactional framework and four waves of longitudinal panel data on over 900 youth, we test both cross-lagged and indirect associations between bullying perpetration, bullying victimization, internalizing symptoms, and perceived friend support. Our method represents one of the most rigorous tests to date of the mutual influences among these factors. The results show that internalizing symptoms and perceived friend support were reciprocally linked to bullying victimization, but perceived support did not predict internalizing symptoms, and bullying perpetration neither preceded nor followed perceived support or internalizing symptoms. There were no significant indirect paths between bullying involvement and internalizing symptoms through perceived friend support. The results provide only partial support for a transactional model in which bullying victimization, support, and internalizing symptoms are reciprocally related. The implications of these findings for theory, future research, and practice are discussed.

The longitudinal relationship between social support and victimization among latino teens

PURPOSE

This study examines the relationship between social support and victimization of Latino youth over time, utilizing the stress prevention and support deterioration models.

METHODS

To address the research questions we utilized data from Waves 1 and 2 (n = 574) of the Dating Violence among Latino Adolescents (DAVILA) study, a national bilingual phone survey of self-identified Latino youth and their caregiver. Cross-lagged panel modeling was used to assess the fit of the two theoretical models to observed patterns of covariance among the victimization and social support variables specified.

RESULTS

Results show that victimization at Wave 1 was positively and strongly related to victimization at Wave 2 and social support at Wave 1 was positively and moderately associated with social support at Wave 2. As hypothesized, higher levels of victimization at Wave 1 were significantly related to decreases in social support at Wave 2 (β = -.15). Wave 1 social support was not significantly related to victimization at Wave 2.

CONCLUSIONS

We did not find support for the stress prevention model but did find support for the support deterioration model. Teens who were victimized tended to have lower levels of subsequent social support, highlighting the need to equip peers, family, and significant others to adequately respond to victimization disclosures.

The relationship between parent-child relationship and peer victimization: a multiple mediation model through peer relationship and depression

Introduction

Peer victimization is a highly prevalent worldwide issue with cross-cultural characteristics. Parent-child relationship and peer victimization is known to be interrelated, but how they influence each other remains unclear. This study explored the mechanisms of peer victimization related to parent-child relationship.

Methods

A total of 58,756 fourth grade students aged 10-12 years (10.83 ± 0.83, 54.4% males) from China completed four questionnaires. A multiple mediator model was tested, in which the two variables influenced each other through the mediating factors of peer relationship and depression.

Results

Peer victimization was indirectly negatively impacted by parent-child relationship through two chain mediating factors of peer relationship and depression: (1) the mediational path through peer relationship with an effect size of 44.66%; (2) the mediational path through depression with an effect size of 21.64%; and (3) the mediational path through peer relationship and depression with an effect size of 18.08%. The total mediational effect size was 84.11%.

Conclusion

The effect size through peer relationship is the strongest among the three mediation paths, suggesting that peer relationship is the key determinant in breaking the link between parent-child relationship and victimization. Poor parent-child and peer relationships may be risk factors eliciting peer victimization. Compared to internalizing behaviors (e.g., depression), low-quality interpersonal relationships maybe the root cause of the formation and maintenance of victimization. Thus, intervention programs against bullying should pay more attention on children's contextual factors, especially their relationships with their families and peers, among children at an early age.

Are victims of bullying primarily social outcasts? Person-group dissimilarities in relational, socio-behavioral, and physical characteristics as predictors of victimization

Existing literature has mostly explained the occurrence of bullying victimization by individual socioemotional maladjustment. Instead, this study tested the person-group dissimilarity model (Wright et al., Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 50: 523-536, 1986) by examining whether individuals' deviation from developmentally important (relational, socio-behavioral, and physical) descriptive classroom norms predicted victimization. Adolescents (N = 1267, k = 56 classrooms; Mage  = 13.2; 48.7% boys; 83.4% Dutch) provided self-reported and peer-nomination data throughout one school year (three timepoints). Results from group actor-partner interdependence models indicated that more person-group dissimilarity in relational characteristics (fewer friendships; incidence rate ratios [IRR]T2  = 0.28, IRRT3  = 0.16, fewer social media connections; IRRT3  = 0.13) and, particularly, lower disruptive behaviors (IRRT2  = 0.35, IRRT3  = 0.26) predicted victimization throughout the school year.

On shaky grounds: Peer victimization predicts friendship instability across the ninth grade school year

INTRODUCTION

Although prior research has considered how friendship quality or quantity influence peer victimization risk and vice versa, considerably less is known about how friendship instability (i.e., high levels of friend turnover) and peer victimization may be related to each other across time.

METHODS

Survey data were collected from 9th grade students (N = 388; M_age  = 14.05; 60.60% female; 35.8% male; 1.8% non-binary; 1.9% trans/unsure/something else) across 3-month intervals spanning one school year. Using cross-lagged panel modeling, this study investigated cross-lagged longitudinal associations between friendship instability and peer victimization utilizing three waves of data collected across one academic year.

RESULTS

Adolescents experiencing greater peer victimization at the beginning of the school year were more likely to experience friendship instability by the end of the school year. However, friendship instability at the beginning of the school year was unrelated to subsequent peer victimization.

CONCLUSION

Peer victimized adolescents are less likely than their nonvictimized peers to maintain stable friendships over time. Findings suggest that adolescents who are victimized by peers after transitioning to high school may have difficulty maintaining friendships.

Temporal approaches to the study of friendship: Understanding the developmental significance of friendship change during childhood and adolescence

With longitudinal studies and recently-developed analyses that can model change, it has become increasingly clear that many types of peer experiences during childhood and adolescence are not static. Instead, such experiences change in numerous ways over time, with significant developmental implications. Most of this recent work, however, has focused on change and stability in group-level peer experiences such as peer victimization, peer exclusion, and popularity. As a result, less is known about the extent to which change occurs, and the developmental significance of such changes, in youths' dyadic-level peer experiences and specifically their friendships. Thus, the goal of this chapter is to illustrate the importance of studying friendship change during childhood and adolescence. To do so, we first review the literature on friendship, in general, and then that pertaining to friendship instability and friendship loss, two related areas of friendship change research that have received some theoretical and empirical attention. We introduce a new friendship development model, and informed by this model, encourage peer relations researchers to consider other types of change in friendships. The concluding sections concentrate on the importance of learning more about friendship change for intervention and prevention efforts with youth.

Reciprocated Friendship as a Mediator of the Effects of Cooperative Learning on Peer Victimization in Middle School

Peer victimization represents a pervasive problem, particularly for students in middle school. Although curriculum-based prevention programs have generated small to moderate effects on victimization, these effects tend to weaken beginning with the transition to middle school. In this study, we evaluated cooperative learning (CL) as a mechanism to prevent victimization, and evaluated reciprocated friendships as a mediator of these effects. Using four waves of data from a cluster randomized trial of CL (7 intervention and 8 control middle schools; N=1,890 students, 47.1% female, 75.2% White), we found that CL significantly reduced victimization after two years, and these effects were mediated by growth in reciprocated friendship in the first year. We conclude that CL can reduce victimization by providing a means for students to engage in extended social interactions with a wider range of peers and thus creating opportunities for students to forge stronger (i.e., reciprocated) friendships.

Moderating Effects of Friendship and Family Support on the Association Between Bullying Victimization and Perpetration in Adolescents

School bullying can cause severe mental health problems for both victims and perpetrators. However, the association between bullying victimization and perpetration has rarely been discussed, and no study has investigated the effects of social support, such as friendship and family support, in moderating this association. Therefore, the authors examined the moderating effects of friendship and family support on the association between bullying victimization and perpetration in adolescents. Data were obtained from the 2009 Project for the Health of Adolescents. Through multistage stratified cluster sampling, 13 junior and 10 senior high schools in southern Taiwan were selected, resulting in a representative sample of 6,445 students from grades 7 to 12. School bullying and family support were examined using the Chinese version of the School Bullying Experience Questionnaire and the Family adaptability, partnership, growth, affection, resolve instrument, respectively. Friendship support was measured using the subscale of the Taiwanese Quality of Life Questionnaire for Adolescents and adolescents' number of friends, time spent with friends, and friend distributions. Linear regression modeling and the Johnson-Neyman technique were used to examine the moderating effects of friendship and family support on the association between bullying victimization and perpetration. For active bullying, having fun and talkative friends and friends outside school negatively moderated the intensity of the association between bullying victimization and perpetration (regression coefficients: -0.02 to -0.05), whereas, for passive bullying, only friends outside school negatively moderated the intensity of the association (regression coefficient: -0.05). By contrast, some components of friendship support positively moderated the associations. These findings suggest that higher friendship quality and having more friends outside of school attenuate the association between bullying victimization and perpetration in adolescents, thus increasing the understanding of the moderating role that social support play in such associations.

Bullying and Victimization in Native and Immigrant Very-Low-Income Adolescents in Italy: Disentangling the Roles of Peer Acceptance and Friendship

Background

Very-low-income students are a population at a high risk of perpetrating and suffering bullying at school, and at the same time the peer group at school is often one of the few sources of support for these minors.

Objective

This two-wave study is aimed to disambiguate the two different roles of peer acceptance and friendship on bullying and victimization in very-low-income adolescents, exploring the possible differential role of immigrant background.

Method

An online survey was administered to 249 early to late adolescents living below the poverty threshold (Mage = 12.76; SDage = 2.34; 41.8% girls; 19.3% immigrants). A multivariate regression model with multi-group analyses was applied.

Results

Our results indicated that peer friendship was a protective factor against bullying as well as victimization, whilst peer acceptance was not protective. Only for natives (but not for immigrants), a high level of peer acceptance was a risk factor for bullying, and low school achievement was a risk factor for victimization. The persistence of victimization over time was significantly stronger for immigrants than for natives.

Conclusions

The study provides new insights for the unique protective role of classmates’ friendship in natives and immigrants, while acceptance appeared to be less relevant. Research and applied implications are discussed.

Exploring Predictors of Bullying and Victimization of Students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD): Findings from NLTS 2012

Research suggests that bullying victimization occurs at higher rates among students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) than among their typically-developing peers. This study used data from the National Longitudinal Transition Study 2012 to explore differences in student and family characteristics between students with ASD and students with all other special education disability categories. The study also examined characteristics serve as predictors of bullying and victimization. Students with ASD were found to have greater difficulties with communication and social skills, as well as less-robust sense of themselves and their abilities than students with all other disabilities. Race, household income, social and communication skills, and self-concept were found to be associated with higher rates of bullying and victimization.

As Violence Unfolds: A Space-Time Study of Situational Triggers of Violent Victimization among Urban Youth

OBJECTIVES

This study clarifies three important issues regarding situational or opportunity theories of victimization: 1) whether engaging in risk activities triggers violent assault during specific, often fleeting moments, 2) how environmental settings along individuals' daily paths affect their risk of violent assault, and 3) whether situational triggers have differential effects on violent assault during the day versus night.

METHODS

Using an innovative GIS-assisted interview technique, 298 young male violent assault victims in Philadelphia, PA described their activity paths over the course of the day of being assaulted. Case-crossover analyses compared each subject's exposure status at the time of assault with his own statuses earlier in the day (stratified by daytime and nighttime).

RESULTS

Being at an outdoor/public space, conducting unstructured activities, and absence of guardians increase the likelihood of violent victimization at a fine spatial-temporal scale at both daytime and nighttime. Yet, the presence of friends and environmental characteristics have differential effects on violent victimization at daytime versus nighttime. Moreover, individual risk activities appeared to exhibit better predictive performance than did environmental characteristics in our space-time situational analyses.

CONCLUSIONS

This study demonstrates the value of documenting how individuals navigate their daily activity space, and ultimately advances our understanding of youth violence from a real-time, real-life standpoint.

The Peer Relationships of Those Who Have Experienced Adoption or Foster Care: A Meta-Analysis

This meta-analytic review examines the presence and quality of close peer relationships for adoptees and individuals with foster care experience. Results indicate that adoptees show difficulty forming close peer relationships compared with biologically reared individuals, but they do not differ in the quality of these relationships. In contrast, those with foster care experience report lower quality peer relationships than biologically reared individuals. Additionally, this meta-analysis includes prevalence rates of close peer relationships that illustrate most adoptees and foster youth report having high-quality peer relationships. These findings have important implications for intervention and prevention efforts and offer directions for future research on peer relationships among adoptees and foster youth, but should be considered in light of the presence of some publication bias.

Comparisons Between Adolescent Bullies, Victims, and Bully-Victims on Perceived Popularity, Social Impact, and Social Preference

This study investigated the effect of bullying role, i.e., bully, victim, and bully-victim, on three measures of peer status; perceived popularity, social preference, and social impact. In addition to completing peer nominations for these measures of peer status, adolescents (n = 2,721) aged 11 to 16 years from 5 secondary schools completed an online survey that assessed bullying involvement (self- and peer-reported), self-esteem, and behavioral difficulties. Compared to uninvolved adolescents, all bullying roles had a greater social impact. Bullies scored higher than all other roles for perceived popularity, whereas victims and bully-victims were the lowest in social preference. These significant group comparisons remained when controlling for demographic variables, behavioral difficulties, self-esteem and prosocial behavior. Overall, the perceived popularity found for bullies suggests that these adolescents are socially rewarded by peers for their victimization of others. These findings highlight the need to address the whole peer system in raising the social status of those who are victimized, whilst reducing the rewards received by bullies for their behavior.

Classroom Size and the Prevalence of Bullying and Victimization: Testing Three Explanations for the Negative Association

Classroom size - i.e., the number of students in the class - is a feature of the classroom environment often found to be negatively related to bullying or victimization. This study examines three possible explanations for this negative association: (a) it is due to measurement effects and therefore only found for peer-reports (Hypothesis 1), (b) bullying perpetrators are more popular and have more friends in smaller classrooms (Hypothesis 2), (c) targets of bullying are more popular and have more friends in larger classrooms (Hypothesis 3). Multilevel regression analyses were conducted on a sample from Austria (1,451 students; Mage = 12.31; 77 classes) and a sample from the Netherlands (1,460 students; Mage = 11.06; 59 classes). Results showed that classroom size was negatively associated with peer-reported bullying and victimization in both samples, and with self-reported bullying and victimization in the Dutch sample only, suggesting partial support for Hypothesis 1. Students high in bullying were found to be more popular in smaller than in larger classrooms in the Austrian sample. The negative link between victimization and popularity was found to be stronger in smaller classrooms than in larger classrooms in the Dutch sample. However, classroom size was not found to moderate links between bullying or victimization and friendship in either sample. Hypotheses 2 and 3 were supported, but only for popularity and in a single sample. Further research is needed to better understand the higher prevalence of bullying found in smaller classrooms in many studies.

Predictors of victimization among youth who are overweight in a national sample

OBJECTIVES

The current cross-sectional study examined whether children who are overweight experience greater levels of parent-reported bullying behaviors and victimization using a national sample. Additionally, the relations among child (mental health), family (parent-child sharing of information), and contextual factors (neighborhood safety, school engagement) and risk of victimization in children who are overweight were assessed.

METHODS

Caregivers provided data via the 2016 National Survey of Children's Health. A series of multinomial logistic regressions were conducted with the subsample of children aged 10 to 17 years (N = 26 094).

RESULTS

Youth who were overweight were more likely to be victimized, but not more likely to bully. Being engaged in school and neighborhood safety were protective factors among youth who were overweight, while living in families where information is shared and difficulty making friends were risk factors.

CONCLUSIONS

Children who were overweight were more likely to be victims, rather than perpetrators, of bullying. Health professionals should assess family and contextual factors in relation to victimization status when developing interventions.

Childhood Predictors of Violent Victimization at Age 17 Years: The Role of Early Social Behavioral Tendencies

OBJECTIVE

To assess the relation between early social behavioral tendencies and the risk of violent victimization in late adolescence.

STUDY DESIGN

We analyzed 5 waves of data from the Zurich Project on the Social Development from Childhood into Adulthood (z-proso), a longitudinal sample of Swiss first graders (N = 1138). Early social behavioral tendencies were measured at age 7 years and included internalizing problems, externalizing behavior, prosocial behavior, negative peer relations, competent problem solving, dominance, and sensation seeking. Path analyses were conducted of the association between these tendencies and violent victimization at age 17 years, and mediation through intermediate victimization at ages 11, 13, and 15 years was examined.

RESULTS

Several childhood social behavioral tendencies predicted victimization 10 years later. Though this was the case for both sexes, the number and type of significant risk factors differed. For male children, sensation seeking, externalizing behavior, high prosociality, and negative peer relations at age 7 years increased later victimization, whereas for female children, dominance and externalizing behavior were predictive. In addition, results showed that the relation between early risk factors and age 17 years victimization was mediated by intermediate victimization, showing that differences in victimization risk in early adolescence are carried forward into late adolescence.

CONCLUSIONS

Childhood social behavioral tendencies predict victimization 10 years later. Incorporating this finding into early prevention programs could reduce victimization over the life course.

Friendless Adolescents: Do Perceptions of Social Threat Account for Their Internalizing Difficulties and Continued Friendlessness?

Adolescents who lack friends at school are at risk of internalizing difficulties. This study examined a social-cognitive mechanism underlying friendlessness and internalizing difficulties (i.e., depressive symptoms, social anxiety, low self-esteem). We tested whether perceived social threat (i.e., peer victimization, sense of unsafety, and peer misconduct) mediates the association between friendlessness and increased internalizing difficulties across middle school. Latent variable structural equation modeling was used to test the model among an ethnically diverse sample of 5,991 (52% female) adolescents. The results demonstrate that friendless sixth-grade students perceived their school environment as more threatening by seventh grade, which in turn, increased internalizing difficulties from sixth to eighth grade. Perceptions of threat also predicted friendlessness at the end of middle school.

The Protective Role of Friends in the Link between Daily Cyber Victimization and Adjustment Problems among Predominately Latino Adolescents

The current study examined whether friendship factors, including time spent with friends and perceived friendship quality, moderate daily associations between cyber victimization and adolescent adjustment (i.e., distress, anger, attendance problems, perceived school safety). The study focuses on the experiences of predominately Latino youth, as they remain an understudied group in cyber victimization research. Participants included 136 high school students (88% Latino) who completed daily checklists across five consecutive school days. Hierarchical linear modeling results revealed that time spent with friends moderated the associations between cyber victimization with distress, anger and attendance problems. For example, on days that adolescents did not spend time with their friends, there was a significant link between cyber victimization and feelings of anger. For adolescents who did spend time with their friends during the day, this association did not exist. Friendship quality only buffered the negative association between daily cyber victimization and feelings of distress.

Origins and Predictors of Friendships in 6- to 8-Year-Old Children Born at Neonatal Risk

OBJECTIVE

To test effects of gestational age (GA), early social experiences, and child characteristics on children's friendships and perceived peer acceptance.

STUDY DESIGN

As part of the prospective Bavarian Longitudinal Study (1147 children, 25-41 weeks GA), children's friendships (eg, number of friends, frequency of meeting friends) and perceived peer acceptance were assessed before school entry (6 years of age) and in second grade (8 years of age) using child and parent reports. The parent-infant relationship was evaluated during the 5 months after birth. Child characteristics (ie, height, motor impairment, cognitive ability, behavioral problems) were measured at 6 years of age. Multiple regressions estimated effects of GA, parent-infant relationship, and child characteristics.

RESULTS

Overall, children with higher GA had more friends, spent more time with friends, and were more accepted by peers at 6 years of age. Better parent-infant relationships, higher cognitive abilities, and fewer motor and behavioral problems predicted more friendships and higher peer acceptance after adjusting for sex, socioeconomic status, multiples, siblings, and special schooling. Across all GA groups, number of friends (child report: mean change, 1.77; 95% CI, 1.57-1.96) and peer acceptance (child report: mean change, 0.14; 95% CI, 0.09-0.19; parent report: mean change, 0.14; 95% CI, 0.11-0.17) increased with age, but the increase in number of friends was higher among preterm children (ie, interaction effect age*GA group: P = .034).

CONCLUSIONS

Our results provide evidence of a dose-response effect of low GA on children's friendships and perceived peer acceptance. Improvements in early parenting and motor, cognitive, and behavioral development may facilitate friendships and peer acceptance for all children across the gestation spectrum.

Individual and Contextual Factors Associated with Immigrant Youth Feeling Unsafe in School: A Social-Ecological Analysis

Despite the increasing proportion of immigrant youth in U.S. school districts, no studies have investigated their perceptions of their school. This study examines factors associated with perceptions of school safety among immigrant youth within individual, family, peer, and school contexts. Data were drawn from Wave II of the Children of Immigrants Longitudinal Study (n = 4288) and hierarchical logistic regression analyses were conducted. African-Americans, females, and youth with limited English proficiency were more likely to perceive their school as unsafe. Youth who reported that family cohesion was important and those who had close friends perceived their school as safe. Also, those who experienced illegal activities in school reported feeling unsafe. Assessment and intervention in schools needs to consider individual and contextual factors associated with perceptions of school safety. Additional research is needed to examine individual and contextual factors related to immigrant youths' perceptions of school.

Self- and Peer-Identified Victims in Late Childhood: Differences in Perceptions of the School Ecology

Patterns of adjustment for youth victimized by peers vary depending on whether youth are identified as victims through self-reports, peer-reports, or both. In order to provide more targeted strategies that may help mitigate negative consequences associated with specific victimization groups, more information is needed about how these youth perceive their school ecology (bullying and academic ecology), their feelings of school belonging, and their valuing of school. Based on the convergence of self- and peer-reports of victimization, we identified four victim groups from a sample of students in 5th grade classrooms (N = 1360; 52.8% girls, 53.1% White, 34.6% Black or Hispanic, 12.2% Native American, Asian, or other) using Latent Profile Analysis (LPA): convergent victims (high self- and peer-reports), self-identified victims (high self-, low peer-reports), peer-identified victims (low self-, high peer-reports), and nonvictims (low self- and peer-reports). Convergent victims' perceptions were similar to nonvictims with key differences being convergent victims' greater willingness to protect peers being bullied but lower feelings of school belonging compared to nonvictims. Peer-identified and self-identified victims perceived differences in the bullying and academic ecology including peer-identified victims' greater willingness to protect peers and expectations for more peers to encourage bulling against them compared to self-identified victims. However, both peer- and self-identified victims perceived greater emotional risk of participating in class and had lower feelings of school belonging compared to nonvictims. Implications for supporting youth with divergent self- and peer-reported victimization status as they transition to middle school are discussed.

Environmental influence of problematic social relationships on adolescents' daily cortisol secretion: a monozygotic twin-difference study

BACKGROUND

This study investigated the potential environmental effects of peer victimization and the quality of relationships with parents and friends on diurnal cortisol secretion in mid-adolescence.

METHOD

This study used the monozygotic (MZ) twin-difference design to control for genetic effects and thus estimate the unique environmental influences on diurnal cortisol. Participants were 136 MZ twin pairs (74 female pairs) for whom cortisol was assessed four times per day over four collection days grouped in a 2-week period in grade 8 (mean age = 14.07 years). Participants also provided self-reports of peer victimization from grade 4 to grade 8 and of the relationship quality with the mother, father and best friend in grade 8.

RESULTS

The expected pattern of diurnal cortisol secretion was observed, with high levels at awakening followed by an increase 30 min later and a progressive decrease subsequently. Controlling for a host of confounders, only within-twin pair differences in peer victimization and a problematic relationship with the mother were significantly linked to twin differences in diurnal cortisol secretion. Specifically, whereas a more problematic mother-child relationship was associated with morning cortisol secretion, peer victimization was linked to cortisol secretion later in the day (diurnal slope).

CONCLUSIONS

Controlling for genetic influences and other confounders, stressful relationships with peers and the mother exert unique and time-specific environmental influences on the pattern of diurnal cortisol secretion in mid-adolescence.

Victimization of Obese Adolescents

Peer victimization of obese adolescents has been associated with low self-esteem, body dissatisfaction, social isolation, marginalization, poor psychosocial adjustment, depression, eating disorders, and suicidal ideation and attempts, not to mention poor academic performance. Weight-based peer victimization is defined as unsolicited bullying and teasing as a result of being overweight or obese. The victimization may be overt or relational. Obese adolescents are at risk of victimization, because their peers view them as different and undesirable. Although peer victimization occurs commonly among adolescents, obese adolescents are more susceptible than their average-weight peers. Because school nurses are often the first line of defense for obese adolescents, they are in an excellent position to identify forms of peer victimization and be prepared to intervene with the victims. School nurses can potentially preserve the psychosocial integrity of obese adolescents by promoting healthy peer interactions and experiences.

What they bring: baseline psychological distress differentially predicts neural response in social exclusion by children's friends and strangers in best friend dyads

Friendships play a major role in cognitive, emotional and social development in middle childhood. We employed the online Cyberball social exclusion paradigm to understand the neural correlates of dyadic social exclusion among best friends assessed simultaneously. Each child played with their friend and an unfamiliar player. Event-related potentials (ERPs) were assessed via electroencephalogram during exclusion by friend and unfamiliar peer. Data were analyzed with hierarchical linear modeling to account for nesting of children within friendship dyads. Results showed that stranger rejection was associated with larger P2 and positive slow wave ERP responses compared to exclusion by a friend. Psychological distress differentially moderated the effects of friend and stranger exclusion such that children with greater psychological distress were observed to have larger neural responses (larger P2 and slow wave) to exclusion by a stranger compared to exclusion by a friend. Conversely, children with lower levels of psychological distress had larger neural responses for exclusion by a friend than by a stranger. Psychological distress within the dyad differentially predicted the P2 and slow wave response. Findings highlight the prominent, but differential role of individual and dyadic psychological distress levels in moderating responses to social exclusion in middle childhood.

School-Based Speech-Language Pathologists' Knowledge and Perceptions of Autism Spectrum Disorder and Bullying

PURPOSE

The purpose of the current investigation was to examine speech-language pathologists' (SLPs') knowledge and perceptions of bullying, with an emphasis on autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

METHOD

A 46-item, web-based survey was used to address the purposes of this investigation. Participants were recruited through e-mail and electronic mailing lists for American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) special interest divisions 1 (Language, Learning, and Education) and 16 (School-Based Issues). Also, an embedded link to the survey was posted on the ASHA Community website and ASHA Facebook page.

RESULTS

Participants demonstrated knowledge of many aspects of bullying research; however, they demonstrated weaknesses in others. All respondents agreed that SLPs should intervene in moments of bullying, but not all indicated that they feel comfortable intervening. Few participants indicated that their school district implemented antibullying campaigns specific to children with special needs, such as ASD.

CONCLUSIONS

As recognized experts in working with children with communication deficits, including individuals with ASD, SLPs have the opportunity to play a key role in antibullying efforts. Results revealed, however, that school-based SLPs may benefit from more information on bullying in order to understand the nature, context, and extent of this issue, as well as ways in which to respond to bullying when it is observed.

Peer reactions to early childhood aggression in a preschool setting: Defenders, encouragers, or neutral bystander

PURPOSE

The purpose of the current study was to determine if peer reactions to aggression among preschool youth were consistent with those conceptualized in the adolescent bullying literature as defenders, encouragers, and neutral bystanders.

RESEARCH DESIGN

Direct observations were used to document patterns for types of peer-directed aggression in early childhood settings to ascertain interaction differences between individuals involved within the bullying dynamic.

METHODS AND PROCEDURES

Observations of 50 students in preschool were conducted over 5.5 months. Event recording procedures were used to document aggressive behaviors and reactions from peers and teachers.

RESULTS

Results indicated that the majority of aggression was physical. Additionally, peer reactions, as described in the bullying literature for school-aged youth, occurred very infrequently.

CONCLUSION

Peer aggression tended to be more physical, suggesting that early childhood educators should attend to these physical interactions, and cultivate a classroom community that emphasizes social supports and appropriate interactions.

Bullying Risk in Children With Learning Difficulties in Inclusive Educational Settings

This study investigated whether students with learning difficulties (LDs) attending inclusive schools that eschewed segregated “pull out” programs reported more incidents of being bullied than their peers without LDs. Cognitive and self-perception factors associated with reports of peer victimization were also explored. Participants were 13 Grade 5 students with LDs and 14 classmates without LDs, matched on gender. Results showed that students with LDs self-reported significantly more incidents of being bullied than students without LDs. After statistical controls for group differences in receptive vocabulary, differences in bullying were no longer significant. Results suggest first that children with LDs in inclusive schools that eschew pull-out programs may still experience significant bullying. Second, the link between LDs, peer rejection, and victimization may reflect the social impact of language difficulties. Implications for reducing peer victimization in inclusive settings are discussed.

Middle School Students’ Preferences for Anti-Bullying Interventions

In this study, 285 middle school students in the United States were surveyed to obtain their preferences regarding anti-bullying intervention strategies. Participants rated their preferences for 15 common anti-bullying intervention strategies involving teachers, students, and non-teaching staff. The strategies were generated based on a review of the literature. Overall, students rated seven of the 15 strategies as being ‘sometimes’ or ‘almost always’ helpful. Participants tended to prefer intervention strategies in which teachers effectively managed their classrooms, thereby deterring bullying, as well as providing direct assistance to students. The results were also suggestive of students desiring teachers to be proactive in helping them solve bully-victim conflicts. Students tended not to prefer strategies that involved non-teaching staff.

Bullying and Victimization Among Taiwanese 7th Graders: A Multi-Method Assessment

The present study investigated the magnitude of school bullying problems among Taiwanese adolescents and collected detailed information about the locations, perpetrators and offence types of peer victimization. Gender differences were also explored. Unlike many previous surveys, the present study utilized multiple measures and provided a more comprehensive picture of the problem. Two hundred and thirty-eight Taiwanese seventh graders were assessed via self- and peer-report measures. The results showed that a considerable number of the respondents had already experienced peer victimization in their first semester of middle school. Victimization by classmates was more prevalent then victimization by people outside class. Verbal and physical aggression were the most common types of victimization. Peer-rated measures showed that most students had bullied others. Boys were more likely to engage in physical and verbal bullying than girls. Implications for research and policy are discussed.

The Roles of Self-Efficacy, Peer Interactions and Attitudes in Bully-Victim Incidents

This study examines the relationship between both bullying and victimization (as a whole and in its different forms) and: (a) self-efficacy measures; (b) peer-interactions and (c) attitudes towards bullying and victimization. It also examined whether bully/victims are a distinct group in terms of the above-mentioned variables. The sample consisted of 448 4th to 6th grade primary education pupils (206 girls, 242 boys). The results of the study clearly indicate that self-efficacy measures, peer interactions and attitudes are associated with both bullying and victimization. In particular: (a) high self-efficacy for aggression is associated with both bullying and victimization, whereas high-self efficacy for assertion and for intervening in bully/victim situations is associated with lower scores on physical victimization for boys and girls respectively; (b) higher scores on positive interactions with peers are associated with lower scores on victimization and (c) higher scores on pro-bully attitudes are associated with higher scores on both bullying and victimization. Bully/victims seem to be a distinct group in terms of their strong pro-bully attitudes and their lack of positive interactions. They are also found to be similar to bullies with respect to self-efficacy for aggression but similar to victims with respect to self-efficacy for assertion. The results of the study are discussed in terms of their implications for school practice and intervention policy.

For Better or Worse: Friendship Choices and Peer Victimization Among Ethnically Diverse Youth in the First Year of Middle School

As children approach early adolescence, the risk of peer victimization often increases. Many children experience some form of peer victimization during this time, but children who experience chronic victimization may be particularly vulnerable to adjustment difficulties. Thus, identifying risk and protective factors associated with chronic victimization continues to be an important area of research. This study examined the effect of change in the victimization of friends on change in children's own victimization, taking into account the ethnic group representation of children in their classes. Over 3000 6th grade students (52 % female; M = 11.33 years) were drawn from 19 middle schools varying in ethnic composition. Friendships were distinguished by type-reciprocal, desired, and undesired-and a novel methodology for measuring ethnic group representation at the individual level was employed. Multilevel modeling indicated that change in friends' victimization from fall to spring of 6th grade had a differential impact on children's own victimization by friendship type and that the benefits and consequences of change in friends' victimization were especially pronounced for children in the numerical ethnic majority. The findings underscore the role of friendship choices in peer victimization, even if those choices are not reciprocated, and highlight the unique social risks associated with being in the numerical ethnic majority.

A meta-analysis of predictors of bullying and victimisation in adolescence

Bullying is common and harms all involved, yet there is no clarity regarding factors that influence bullying and victimisation for adolescent samples. This meta-analysis aims to synthesise the literature and identify reliable risk and protective factors to adolescent bullying and victimisation. A systematic search of the literature using databases; PsycINFO and Scopus, was undertaken to identify relevant publications from 1985 until July 2014. Inclusion criteria included longitudinal data, an adolescent sample and a focus on predictive factors of bullying or victimisation. From 4698 articles identified, 18 were included. Four predictors of victimisation (prior victimisation, conduct problems, social problems and internalising problems) and four predictors of bullying (conduct problems, social problems, school problems and age) were identified. The literature provides little consistency in predictors assessed and replication is needed for clarification, however, social problems and conduct problems are consistent risk factors and a potential focus for future interventions.

Bullying and Internalizing Problems: Gender Differences and the Buffering Role of Parental Communication

Bullying is a widespread problem facing American adolescents. A better understanding of factors that may moderate the impact of bullying is important given its negative consequences for well-being. This study examines the association between bullying experiences and internalizing problems among a nationally representative sample of young adolescents. Additionally, we consider the ease of parental communication as a potential moderating factor in these associations. Using a structural equation modeling technique, results suggest that bullying is characteristically different for adolescent boys and girls and that its association with internalizing problems is stronger for adolescent females. Results also indicate that parental communication moderates the association between bullying and internalizing problems; higher levels of parental communication buffer adolescents against the negative influence of bullying.

A review of bullying prevention and intervention in South Korean schools: an application of the social-ecological framework

School bullying is a serious social problem that results in potentially severe and long lasting consequences for youth, parents, teachers, and school officials. Commensurate with the serious nature and outcomes of bullying, there has been a number of bullying prevention and intervention programs and measures in schools. The current review provides a synthesis and evaluation of the existing research on bullying prevention and intervention strategies in South Korean schools, set within Bronfenbrenner's social-ecological contexts, including the micro- (i.e., family, peer, school), meso- (i.e., family-school), and macro- (i.e., religion, policies) systems. We also discuss the strengths and limitations of the research reviewed and provide directions for future research focusing on major empirical gaps in the literature on bullying prevention and intervention strategies in South Korea.