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Bilir Özturk P, Bayram Özdemir S, Strohmeier D. They Are Not All the Same: Defenders of Ethnically Victimized Adolescents. J Youth Adolesc 2024:10.1007/s10964-024-02026-2. [PMID: 38842747 DOI: 10.1007/s10964-024-02026-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2024] [Accepted: 05/21/2024] [Indexed: 06/07/2024]
Abstract
Developing a comprehensive understanding of adolescents' defending behaviors in peer victimization incidents is crucial, as these behaviors are instrumental in preventing victimization in schools. Despite recent efforts to examine various defender subgroups and their characteristics, the heterogeneity in defending behaviors within the context of ethnic victimization remains unclear. To address this gap in knowledge, the current study examined naturally occurring subgroups of defenders in ethnic victimization incidents and investigated whether these subgroups differ in their socio-cognitive skills, class norms, and social status within peer relationships. The sample included adolescents in Sweden (N = 1065; Mage = 13.12, SD = 0.41; 44.5% females). Cluster analysis yielded four distinct subgroups: victim-oriented defenders (41.3%), hybrid defenders (23.5%), bully-oriented defenders (9.8%), and non-defenders (25.4%). Hybrid and victim-oriented defenders had higher levels of perspective taking skills and positive attitudes toward immigrants than non-defenders. All three defender subgroups perceived their classroom climate as more socially cohesive than non-defenders. All four subgroups did not significantly differ in their peer status. These findings emphasize the importance of fostering inclusive class norms and implementing classroom practices that facilitate the development of perspective taking skills among students. Such effort can enhance adolescents' active defending behaviors in instances of ethnic victimization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pinar Bilir Özturk
- Center for Lifespan Development Research, School of Behavioural, Social and Legal Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden.
| | - Sevgi Bayram Özdemir
- Center for Lifespan Development Research, School of Behavioural, Social and Legal Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden
| | - Dagmar Strohmeier
- School of Medical Engineering and Applied Social Sciences, University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria, Linz, Austria
- Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioural Research in Education, University of Stavanger, Stavanger, Norway
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Wang X, Wei H, Wang P. Adolescents High in Callous-Unemotional Traits are Prone to be Bystanders: The Roles of Moral Disengagement, Moral Identity, and Perceived Social Support. Child Psychiatry Hum Dev 2024:10.1007/s10578-024-01709-y. [PMID: 38739301 DOI: 10.1007/s10578-024-01709-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 04/15/2024] [Indexed: 05/14/2024]
Abstract
Bystanders are the most common role that adolescents play in bullying episodes, they have considerable influence on the formation of the victim's experience and the perpetrator's behavior. Based on the social-cognitive model, the current study examined the mediating role of moral disengagement in the association between callous-unemotional traits and bystander behavior and the moderating roles of moral identity and perceived social support. Participants included 2,286 Chinese adolescents aged 11-16 years (49.3% boys; Mage = 13.46, SDage = 0.93). The study showed callous-unemotional traits were significantly and positively associated with bystander behavior and this relation was partially mediated by moral disengagement. Moral identity moderated the relation between callous-unemotional traits and moral disengagement as well as callous-unemotional traits and bystander behavior. Perceived social support moderated in the direct and indirect associations between callous-unemotional traits and bystander behavior via moral disengagement. The relation between callous-unemotional traits and moral disengagement and the relation between callous-unemotional traits and bystander behavior became weaker for adolescents with high perceived social support. Surprisingly, the relation between moral disengagement and bystander behavior became stronger for adolescents with a high level of perceived social support. The results supported two specific patterns of perceived social support: stress-buffering and reverse stress-buffering. The present study contributes to our understanding of the key mechanisms underlying the association between callous-unemotional traits and adolescents' bystander behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xingchao Wang
- School of Educational Science, Shanxi University, No. 92 Wucheng Road, Xiaodian District, Taiyuan, 030006, China
| | - Huibin Wei
- School of Educational Science, Shanxi University, No. 92 Wucheng Road, Xiaodian District, Taiyuan, 030006, China
| | - Pengcheng Wang
- School of Media & Communication, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, No. 800 Dongchuan Road, Minhang District, Shanghai, 200240, China.
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Wachs S, Bilz L, Wettstein A, Espelage DL. Validation of the multidimensional bystander responses to racist hate speech scale and its association with empathy and moral disengagement among adolescents. Aggress Behav 2024; 50:e22105. [PMID: 37490043 DOI: 10.1002/ab.22105] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2023] [Revised: 06/03/2023] [Accepted: 07/06/2023] [Indexed: 07/26/2023]
Abstract
Our understanding of how bystanders respond to hate speech is limited. This may be due, in part, to the lack of available measurement tools. However, understanding adolescents' responses to hate speech is critical because this kind of research can support schools in empowering students to exhibit courageous moral behavior. Thus, the purpose of the present study was to investigate the psychometric properties of the newly developed Multidimensional Bystander Responses to Hate Speech Scale (MBRHS) and to explore demographic differences and correlates of bystander behavior in school hate speech. The sample consisted of 3225 seventh to ninth graders from Germany and Switzerland. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses supported a model with seven factors. We found that adolescents with immigrant background and boys showed particularly unfavorable response patterns. In addition, our study suggests that empathy is positively correlated with the factors comforting the victim, seeking help at school, and countering hate speech but negatively correlated with helplessness, revenge, reinforcing, and ignoring. Moral disengagement showed the opposite correlational pattern. The findings indicate that the MBRHS is a psychometrically valid and reliable measure that could aid in measuring varied responses to hate speech. In addition, this work highlights the relevance of empathy and moral engagement training in anti-hate speech prevention programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Wachs
- Department of Educational Sciences, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
- Institute of Education, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Ludwig Bilz
- Department of Health Sciences, Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg, Cottbus, Germany
| | - Alexander Wettstein
- Institute for Research, Development and Evaluation, Bern University of Teacher Education, Bern, Switzerland
| | - Dorothy L Espelage
- School of Education, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
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Malin Y, Gumpel TP. Dispositional mindfulness plays a major role in adolescents' active and passive responding to bully-victim dynamics. Aggress Behav 2023; 49:509-520. [PMID: 37098754 DOI: 10.1002/ab.22087] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Revised: 03/02/2023] [Accepted: 04/16/2023] [Indexed: 04/27/2023]
Abstract
Past research on school bullying focused on the role of the bully, suggesting that this active perpetrator is characterized by low empathy, low self-regulation, and high moral disengagement (MD). Studies recently demonstrated a relationship between dispositional mindfulness and bullying as well. However, in the last 2 decades, research has broadened this perspective, suggesting that active and passive bystanders may play a major role in school bullying by either supporting or opposing bullying. In this research, we examined whether empathy, MD, self-regulation, and mindfulness are significantly associated with probullying, defending, and bystanding behaviors. A total of 429 middle and high school adolescents from Israel (mean age = 16.81 years, SD = 1.62) completed online questionnaires. Through structural equation modeling, we found that empathy was associated with both, self-regulation and defending behaviors. MD was associated with defending and probullying behaviors. Dispositional mindfulness was associated with all three roles we examined. All these relationships were significant and in the expected direction. As mindfulness is a disposition that can be cultivated, this finding may have further implications in programs that aim at reducing school bullying.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yael Malin
- Seymour Fox School of Education, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Thomas P Gumpel
- Seymour Fox School of Education, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
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Švecová J, Furstova J, Kaščáková N, Hašto J, Tavel P. The effect of childhood trauma and resilience on psychopathology in adulthood: Does bullying moderate the associations? BMC Psychol 2023; 11:230. [PMID: 37568213 PMCID: PMC10422767 DOI: 10.1186/s40359-023-01270-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2023] [Accepted: 08/03/2023] [Indexed: 08/13/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Exposure to traumatic events in childhood, including bullying, can negatively affect physical and mental health in adulthood. The aim of the present study was to determine the prevalence of bullying in different sociodemographic groups of the Slovak Republic and to assess the moderating effect of bullying on the associations between childhood trauma, resilience, and the later occurrence of psychopathology. METHODS For the analyses, a representative sample of the population of the Slovak Republic was used (N = 1018, mean age 46.24 years, 48.7% of men). Multivariate linear regression models were used to investigate the predictive ability of childhood trauma (The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, CTQ) and resilience (The Brief Resilience Scale, BRS) to explain psychopathology (The Brief Symptom Inventory, BSI-53). Bullying (The Adverse Childhood Experiences - International Questionnaire, ACE-IQ) was used as a moderator. RESULTS In total, 13.5% of respondents have experienced bullying. The most common form of bullying was making fun of someone because of how their body or face looked (46.7%) and excluding someone from activities or ignoring them (36.5%). Higher scores in all types of psychopathology and the Global Severity Index (GSI) were significantly associated with higher scores of emotional and sexual abuse, and some of them with physical neglect. The protective effect of resilience was moderated by bullying in several types of psychopathology, specifically in somatization, obsessive-compulsive, interpersonal sensitivity, depression, psychoticism, and the GSI. CONCLUSION Understanding the links between childhood trauma, bullying, and later psychopathology can help professionals target policies, resources, and interventions to support children and families at risk. Every child should feel accepted and safe at home and school.
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Affiliation(s)
- Júlia Švecová
- Olomouc University Social Health Institute, Palacky University Olomouc, Univerzitni 22, Olomouc, 77111, Czech Republic.
| | - Jana Furstova
- Olomouc University Social Health Institute, Palacky University Olomouc, Univerzitni 22, Olomouc, 77111, Czech Republic
| | - Natália Kaščáková
- Olomouc University Social Health Institute, Palacky University Olomouc, Univerzitni 22, Olomouc, 77111, Czech Republic
- Psychiatric-Psychotherapeutic Outpatient Clinic, Heydukova 27, Bratislava, 81108, Slovakia
| | - Jozef Hašto
- Olomouc University Social Health Institute, Palacky University Olomouc, Univerzitni 22, Olomouc, 77111, Czech Republic
- Psychiatric-Psychotherapeutic Outpatient Clinic, Heydukova 27, Bratislava, 81108, Slovakia
| | - Peter Tavel
- Olomouc University Social Health Institute, Palacky University Olomouc, Univerzitni 22, Olomouc, 77111, Czech Republic
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Garandeau CF, Turunen T, Saarento-Zaprudin S, Salmivalli C. Effects of the KiVa anti-bullying program on defending behavior: Investigating individual-level mechanisms of change. J Sch Psychol 2023; 99:101226. [PMID: 37507180 DOI: 10.1016/j.jsp.2023.101226] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2022] [Revised: 03/10/2023] [Accepted: 06/27/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023]
Abstract
Given that defending victimized peers might help discourage bullying behavior and prevent its harmful consequences, various anti-bullying programs have attempted to increase defending behavior among participating children. However, the cognitions that underlie the effectiveness of interventions in increasing defending remain unknown. Data for this randomized controlled trial (RCT) of the KiVa anti-bullying program were collected in Finnish primary schools at baseline, after 5 months of implementation, and after 9 months of implementation and were used to examine the possible mediating role of seven psychological factors (empathy for the victim, feelings of responsibility to intervene, self-efficacy for defending, negative attitudes towards victims, and outcome expectations that defending would decrease or stop the bullying, be beneficial for one's status, and not increase one's risk of being victimized). Analyses conducted on a sample of 5731 children (baseline Mage = 11 years; 51% girls) revealed that the positive effects of KiVa on defending behavior after 9 months of implementation could partly be explained by the positive effects of the program on two factors (i.e., feelings of responsibility to intervene and expectations that the defending would make the bullying decrease or stop) after 5 months of implementation. This study provides information regarding the individual-level factors that anti-bullying interventions can target to successfully promote defending of victimized peers in primary schools.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Christina Salmivalli
- INVEST Flagship, University of Turku, Finland; Department of Psychology, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, China.
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Eijigu TD, Teketel SZ. Students' defending and passive bystanding behaviours when witnessing school bullying in North Western Ethiopia: Roles of personal and situational factors. JOURNAL OF COMMUNITY & APPLIED SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/casp.2676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
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Palmer SB, Hitti A, Abrams D, Cameron L, Sims RN, Woodward B, Killen M. When to intervene and take a stand: Evaluating bystander roles in intergroup name‐calling contexts. JOURNAL OF COMMUNITY & APPLIED SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/casp.2675] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sally B. Palmer
- Graduate School of Education University of Exeter England UK
| | - Aline Hitti
- Department of Psychology University of San Francisco San Francisco California USA
| | | | | | - Riley N. Sims
- Department of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology University of Maryland College Park Maryland USA
| | - Bonnie Woodward
- Department of Psychology University of Maryland Baltimore County Maryland USA
| | - Melanie Killen
- Department of Human Development and Quantitative Methodology University of Maryland College Park Maryland USA
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Defending or not? The role of peer status, social self-efficacy, and moral disengagement on Chinese adolescents’ bystander behaviors in bullying situations. CURRENT PSYCHOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s12144-022-04039-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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Tolmatcheff C, Galand B, Roskam I, Veenstra R. The effectiveness of moral disengagement and social norms as anti-bullying components: A randomized controlled trial. Child Dev 2022; 93:1873-1888. [PMID: 35876243 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.13828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
This three-armed randomized controlled trial examined how moral disengagement and social norms account for change in bullying behavior and their potential as targets of anti-bullying components within separate interventions among 1200 French-speaking Belgian elementary students (48% boys, 9-12 year-olds, 57 classes, nine schools) during 2018-2019 (no ethnicity data available). Mediation analysis revealed that students' moral disengagement successfully decreased (β = -.46), which, in turn, reduced both bullying (β = .33) and outsider behaviors (β = .20), and increased defending (β = -.10). Intervening on social norms decreased bullying (β = -.18), but not through the perceived injunctive class norm as intended. Guidelines to open the "black box" of anti-bullying programs and determine the cost-effectiveness ratio of their components are provided.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chloé Tolmatcheff
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Benoit Galand
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Isabelle Roskam
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - René Veenstra
- Department of Sociology, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
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The Relationship between Personal Variables and Perceived Appropriateness of Coping Strategies against Cybervictimisation among Pre-Service Teachers. SUSTAINABILITY 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/su14095575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Cyberbullying behaviours begin at primary school, so the actions taken by pre-teachers will play a key role in achieving the goals in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. More specifically, active coping strategies are essential in reducing victimisation. The aim of this study was to identify the coping strategies considered effective by pre-service teachers and to analyse the perceived appropriateness of active and passive strategies in relation to personal variables. The participants were 1122 students on the Bachelor’s Degree in Education at the University of Castile-La Mancha in Spain. The study measured the perceived appropriateness of five active coping strategies and four passive coping strategies, moral disengagement, experiences of bullying and cyberbullying, emotions in response to bullying and gender stereotypes. The results show that more than 25% of pre-service teachers are not prepared to manage cyberbullying effectively. Prior experiences of victimisation, personal masculinity in men and moral emotions in women are related to active strategies, while moral disengagement, and pleasant emotions in women, are related to passive strategies. Universities must implement initiatives to ensure that pre-service teachers receive training on effective coping strategies and reflect on the personal factors influencing their decisions.
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Caravita SCS, Finne JN, Fandrem H. Two Dimensions of Moral Cognition as Correlates of Different Forms of Participation in Bullying. Front Psychol 2022; 12:768503. [PMID: 35250690 PMCID: PMC8896117 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.768503] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2021] [Accepted: 12/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The present study investigated the extent to which moral disengagement and the tendency to consider moral rules as socio-conventional rules are distinct dimensions of morality, and their association with three different forms of participation in bullying (perpetrating bullying, defending the victim and passive bystander behavior). These two types of moral cognitions have been theorized in different models of morality and are usually studied independently, even if research on moral shifts (the interpretation of a moral rule transgression as a socio-conventional rule transgression) suggests some possible overlaps. A group of 276 Italian students from primary and middle school (aged 8–15) completed self-reports assessing moral disengagement, socio-conventional perception of moral rules, and participation in bullying as bully, defender of the victim and passive bystander. Results from structural equation modeling analysis confirmed that moral disengagement and socio-conventional comprehension of aggressions are separate and moderately connected morality dimensions. Controlling for age, gender and SES, only moral disengagement was positively associated with perpetrating bullying. These results point to moral disengagement as the critical component of moral cognitions to be addressed in interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simona C. S. Caravita
- Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioural Research in Education, University of Stavanger, Stavanger, Norway
- Department of Psychology, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan, Italy
- *Correspondence: Simona C. S. Caravita,
| | - Johannes N. Finne
- Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioural Research in Education, University of Stavanger, Stavanger, Norway
| | - Hildegunn Fandrem
- Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioural Research in Education, University of Stavanger, Stavanger, Norway
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