Dyadic nominations of bullying: Comparing types of bullies and their victims

Previous studies indicate that when identifying individuals involved in bullying, the concordance between self- and peer- reports is low to moderate. There is support that self- and peer- identified victims constitute distinct types of victims and differ in adjustment. Likewise, differentiating between self- and peer- reports of bullying may also reveal distinct types of bullies. The goal of this study was to examine differences between types of bullies identified via dyadic nominations (self-identified, victim-identified, and self/victim identified). First, we examined the concordance between dyadic nominations of bullying and traditional measures of bullying (i.e., self- and peer-reports). Second, we compared the behavioral profiles of the bully types to nonbullies, with a focus on aggressive behaviors and social status. Third, we examined whether the types of bullies targeted victims with different levels of popularity, as well as the role of their own popularity and prioritizing of popularity. Participants were 1,008 Dutch adolescents (50.1% male, M_age = 14.14 years, standard deviation [SD] = 1.30) who completed a classroom assessment of dyadic nominations, peer nominations, and self-report items. Results indicated that victim identified and self/victim identified bullies were more aggressive, more popular, and less socially preferred than self-identified bullies and nonbullies. Self/victim identified bullies targeted victims with the highest social status. The association between bully type and victims' popularity was further qualified by bullies' own popularity and the degree to which they prioritized popularity. Implications for the implementation of dyadic nominations are discussed.     

Psychological processes in young bullies versus bully‐victims

Some children who bully others are also victimized themselves (“bully‐victims”) whereas others are not victimized themselves (“bullies”). These subgroups have been shown to differ in their social functioning as early as in kindergarten. What is less clear are the motives that underlie the bullying behavior of young bullies and bully‐victims. The present study examined whether bullies have proactive motives for aggression and anticipate to feel happy after victimizing others, whereas bully‐victims have reactive motives for aggression, poor theory of mind skills, and attribute hostile intent to others. This “distinct processes hypothesis” was contrasted with the “shared processes hypothesis,” predicting that bullies and bully‐victims do not differ on these psychological processes. Children (n = 283, age 4–9) were classified as bully, bully‐victim, or noninvolved using peer‐nominations. Theory of mind, hostile intent attributions, and happy victimizer emotions were assessed using standard vignettes and false‐belief tasks; reactive and proactive motives were assessed using teacher‐reports. We tested our hypotheses using Bayesian model selection, enabling us to directly compare the distinct processes model (predicting that bullies and bully‐victims deviate from noninvolved children on different psychological processes) against the shared processes model (predicting that bullies and bully‐victims deviate from noninvolved children on all psychological processes alike). Overall, the shared processes model received more support than the distinct processes model. These results suggest that in early childhood, bullies and bully‐victims have shared, rather than distinct psychological processes underlying their bullying behavior.     

Individual and social network predictors of the short‐term stability of bullying victimization in the United Kingdom and Germany

Background. There is still relatively little research on the social context within which bullying develops and remains stable. Aim. This study examined the short‐term stability of bullying victimization among primary school students in the United Kingdom and Germany (mean age, 8.9 years) and the individual and social network factors that contributed to remaining a victim of bullying. Sample. The sample consisted of 454 children (247 males and 207 females). Methods. Participants completed questionnaires on bullying victimization at three assessment points over a 9‐week period. Other measures consisted of self‐reported demographic, peer, and family relationship characteristics. Social network indices of density, reciprocity, and hierarchy were constructed using friendship and peer acceptance nominations. Results. Relative risk analyses indicated a six‐fold increased risk of remaining a victim at consequent follow‐ups, compared to a child not victimized at baseline becoming a victim over the follow‐up period. Individual characteristics explained substantially more variance in the stability of bullying victimization than class‐level factors. Hierarchical logistic regression analyses revealed that being victimized by siblings and being rejected by peers predicted remaining a victim over a 9‐week period. Conclusions. Bullying victimization among primary school students proved moderately stable over a 9‐week period. Individual characteristics were more influential in predicting the stable victim role than class‐level factors. Our findings have implications for the identification of stable victims in primary school and early preventative bullying programs.     

The personality traits of workplace bullies are often shared by their victims: Is there a dark side to victims?

In this exploratory study, we examined the extent to which both workplace bullies and victims possess bully-typifying traits, using a 22-item scale that simultaneously measures perpetrators and targets of negative workplace acts. Participants were 224 Canadian university students aged 18–47 with prior work experience. Bivariate correlational analyses determined that bullying others was positively associated with measures of Machiavellianism, narcissism, psychoticism, aggression, and disinhibition. Being a victim was positively associated with the same Machiavellianism, narcissism, psychoticism, and aggression measures. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that an “alternative dark triad” of Machiavellianism, narcissism, and psychoticism related significantly to bullying scores; while psychoticism and Machiavellianism related significantly to victim scores. Aggression and sensation seeking measures failed to account for significant variance in bully or victim scores beyond the triad variables. The vast majority of bullies (89.7%) and many victims (41.7%) were bully/victims, operationally defined as being both perpetrators and targets at least once per week in the last 6 months. Researchers and employers would do well to recognize the presence of bully/victims in their efforts to understand and reduce workplace bullying.     

Temperament, ADHD and peer relations among schoolchildren: the mediating role of school bullying

The goal of the study is to investigate the link between temperament, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms, social preference, bullying and victimization. The study sample consisted of 195 children attending the fourth and fifth grade (age 8-10), their mothers and their teachers. A multiinformant approach was used: mothers were interviewed about the temperament of their children; teachers were asked about ADHD symptoms; children responded to a peer nominations inventory designed to investigate their roles as bullies and/or victims and their social preferences (liked and disliked peers). A Structural Equation Model multigroup analysis (males and females) was used to test the relationships among variables hypothesized by the authors. The analysis showed that temperamental variables have a direct relation to ADHD symptoms, that ADHD has a direct relation to bullying behavior in males and to victimization in females and that bullies and victims are less well accepted than peers who belong to neither category. ADHD has only an indirect relation to social preference through the mediating role of school bullying.     

Bullying Is Power

ABSTRACT

The present investigation examines subtypes of bullies, distinguished on the basis of social power, some of whom fit the traditional characterization of bullies as poorly accepted, psychologically troubled, marginal members of the peer group and others who exhibit a much more positive set of social characteristics and who are afforded high status within the peer group. In a sample of 555 grade 6 to 10 Canadian students, the associations between bullying, power, and social status were examined, as well as variability in bullies across behavioral and non-behavioral characteristics, self-perceptions, and mental health functioning. Peer nominations were used to assess bullying, social status, aggressive behavior, competencies and assets, and self-reports were used to assess social self-perceptions and internalizing difficulties. Results indicated that, although generally viewed by peers as disliked and aggressive, a substantial number of bullies were also seen as both popular and powerful with leadership qualities, competencies and assets. In terms of their own social self-perceptions, bullies reported feeling good about themselves and their peer interactions. When subgroups of bullies were distinguished in terms of varying levels of perceived social power, powerful bullies were perceived by peers to be more popular, better liked and more physically and relationally aggressive than low power bullies. Additionally, powerful bullies were viewed as exhibiting more competencies and assets such as being physically attractive, wearing stylish clothing, and being good athletes. Findings are discussed in terms of the perpetuation of bullying behavior and the implications of the present findings for anti-bullying interventions.     

Predicting bullying and victimization among early adolescents: Associations with disruptive behavior disorders

Bullying is a common problem faced by children and adolescents in schools. One hypothesis that needs to be examined regarding the causation of this problem is whether being a bully or a victim may stem from disparate underlying patterns of psychopathology. Results are particularly scarce regarding the association between bully‐victim problems and disruptive behavior disorders. The present study sought to investigate the association between DSM‐IV symptoms of Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD), Conduct Disorder (CD), and bully‐victim problems in a sample of 202 adolescents, aged 12–15, attending two junior high schools in Cyprus, to determine whether these symptoms differentiate between bullies and victims and provide a new approach to the understanding of bully‐victim problems. Students completed measures of bullying, victimization, disruptive behavior disorder symptoms, and self‐esteem, along with demographic questions. On the basis of their responses, teenagers were classified as bullies, victims, or both bullies and victims. Those who were bully/victims reported greater CD symptomatology. CD and low self‐esteem were predictive of bullying, whereas ODD and low self‐esteem were predictive of victimization. Aggr. Behav. 30:520–533, 2004. © 2004 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Bullies, Victims, and Antipathy: The Feeling is Mutual

In this study we consider whether bullies and victims are disliked by most of their classmates, or whether antipathy is concentrated among the occupants of these roles. Antipathy nominations were collected from a community sample of 699 Finnish adolescents (14 to 17 years of age), who described their own bullying and victimization, as well as problem behaviors and school engagement. Victimization was associated with antipathy, but the strength of the association differed according to characteristics of the nominator. Victimization was related to antipathy when the nominator was high on bullying but not low. Similarly, bullying was related to antipathy when the nominator was high on victimization, but not low. The findings indicate that although bullies and victims have elevated mean levels of rejection, they are not disliked by most peers but rather by those who report themselves to be high on these attributes.     

青少年友谊网络与受欺凌的共同变化关系：一项纵向社会网络分析研究

欺凌是一种涉及多类行为和多主体互动的群体过程, 但是已有研究很少在同伴的群体互动和关系变化过程中研究欺凌相关行为的发展。尤其是受欺凌作为一种被动承受而非主动选择的行为结果, 对其在同伴情境中的变化过程研究更为有限。本研究从青少年的友谊网络与其受欺凌的共变关系入手, 采用纵向社会网络分析法, 对来自26个班1406名学生进行为期1年的3个时间点(七年级末、八年级上学期末、八年级下学期末)的追踪研究, 结果发现：(1)受欺凌影响群体内友谊关系的建立：受欺凌水平高的青少年更难以与同伴建立朋友关系(同伴回避效应), 且更倾向于选择同样受欺凌水平高的个体作为朋友(同伴选择效应); (2)友谊关系影响受欺凌水平的变化：在群体中拥有更多朋友关系的青少年, 其受欺凌水平会逐渐降低(同伴保护效应); 但另一方面, 拥有高受欺凌水平朋友的青少年, 自己的受欺凌水平会随着时间呈增高趋势(同伴影响效应); (3)随着时间的发展, 女生的受欺凌水平比男生更容易降低(性别影响效应)。研究结果揭示了友谊网络和受欺凌的共变关系, 为校园欺凌群体干预提供启示。     

‘What about bullying?’ An experimental field study to understand students' attitudes towards bullying and victimisation in Italian middle schools

Background: Attitudes towards bullying at school are influential in understanding and preventing bullying behaviour but they should be measured with reference to the particular conditions under which bullying takes place. Aims: To establish how far positive and negative judgments of bullying and victims and blaming of the victim vary according to the gender of observers, gender of bullies and of victims and whether the bullying took place alone or in group. Sample: Participants were 117 students (49 boys and 68 girls), aged 11–12, recruited from a middle school in Italy randomly allocated to one of four independent groups according to experimental condition: bullying alone among girls, bullying alone among boys, bullying in groups among girls, bullying in groups among boys. Method: Participants watched one of four versions of a video according to experimental condition showing a brief standardized bullying episode taking place at a school; they then had to fill in a self‐report questionnaire measuring the dependent variables: respondents' positive or negative judgments towards the bully and the victim shown in the video and how far the victim was blamed for what had happened. Results: Overall, results indicate students have positive attitudes towards the victims of bullying and tend not to blame them for what has happened. However, same gender identification lead girls to blame male victims more than female victims and the reverse applies in case of boys providing their judgments. A bully acting alone is considered stronger and braver than when acting in a group. Conclusions: The limits and potential of the study are presented with special attention to implications for intervention strategies in school by focusing on the role observers could play in supporting the victims and discouraging the bullies.     

Who escapes or remains a victim of bullying in primary school?

The stability of both direct and relational victimization and factors that contribute to remaining, escaping or becoming a victim of bullying were investigated. 663 children at baseline aged 6–9 (years 2–4) were interviewed about their bullying experiences and parents completed a behaviour and health measure. Children's perception of the degree of social hierarchical structuring and social prominence in their class was determined by peer nominations. 432 children participated in the follow‐up either 2 or 4 years after baseline aged 10–11 (year 6) and completed a bullying questionnaire. Relational victims and children from classes with a high hierarchical structure were more likely to have dropped out of the study compared to neutral children, and children from classes with a low hierarchical structure. Relative risk analyses indicated a twofold increased risk of remaining a direct victim at follow‐up, compared to a child not involved at baseline becoming a victim over the follow‐up period. In contrast, relational victimization increased but was not found to be stable. Logistic regression analyses revealed that being a girl, and receiving few positive peer nominations predicted remaining a direct victim. Becoming a relational victim at follow‐up was predicted by a strong class hierarchy. The implications for future study of early recognition of likely long term victims and early preventative bullying initiatives are discussed.     

Students with Exceptionalities and the Peer Group Context of Bullying and Victimization in Late Elementary School

We examined bullying and victimization in 5th grade classrooms in relation to students’ education status and peer group membership. The sample consisted of 484 participants (258 girls, 226 boys), including 369 general education students, 74 academically gifted students, and 41 students with mild disabilities. Students with mild disabilities were more likely to be perceived as being bullies by both teachers and peers. Teachers also rated students with mild disabilities significantly higher for being bullied by peers. Academically gifted students were rated by teachers as the lowest for both bullying and being bullied. Associating with aggressive or perceived-popular peers increased the likelihood of being perceived as a bully. Social isolates were more likely to be bullied than students who did not associate with perceived-popular peers who, in turn, were more likely to be bullied than students who associated with perceived-popular peers. Students with mild disabilities who had aggressive and perceived-popular associates had more peer nominations for bullying than all others. In contrast, students in general education with neither aggressive nor perceived-popular associates had the fewest peer nominations for bullying. We discuss implications for research and intervention.     

Moral disengagement in self-reported and peer-nominated school bullying

This study examined the relation between moral disengagement and different self-reported and peer-nominated positions in school bullying. The aims of this study were to (1) investigate moral disengagement among children for whom self-reported and peer-nominated bully status diverged and (2) compare levels of disengagement among self-reported and peer-nominated pure bullies, pure victims, bully-victims, and children not involved in bullying. A sample of 739 Danish sixth grade and seventh grade children (mean age 12.6) was included in the study. Moral disengagement was measured using a Danish version of the Moral Disengagement Scale and bullying was measured using both self-reports and peer nominations. Results revealed that both self-reported and peer-nominated bullying were related to moral disengagement, and that both pure bullies and bully-victims displayed higher moral disengagement than outsiders. Discrepancies between self-reported and peer-nominated bullying involvement indicates that a person's social reputation has a stronger association with moral disengagement than so far expected. Implications are discussed, highlighting the importance of further research and theory development.     

Involvement in traditional and electronic bullying among adolescents

The increasing availability of Internet and cell phones has provided new avenues through which adolescents can bully. Electronic bullying is a new form of bullying that may threaten adolescent social and emotional development. In this study the relation between involvement in electronic and traditional bullying was examined. Eighty-four adolescents completed questionnaires regarding their involvement in traditional and electronic bullying. Results show that students' roles in traditional bullying predicted the same role in electronic bullying. Also, being a victim of bullying on the Internet or via text messages was related to being a bully at school. Traditional victims were not found to be electronic bullies. Perceptions of the effects of and motivations for electronic bullying are discussed.     

Empirical test of bullies' status goals: assessing direct goals, aggression, and prestige

The literature suggests that status goals are one of the driving motivations behind bullying behavior, yet this conjecture has rarely if ever been examined empirically. This study assessed status goals in three ways, using dyadic network analysis to analyze the relations and goals among 10-11 and 14-15 year olds in 22 school classes (N boys=225; N girls=277). As a validation bullies were contrasted with victims. Bullies had direct status goals (measured with the Interpersonal Goal Inventory for Children) and showed dominance as measured with proactive aggression. Moreover, as predicted from a goal perspective, bullying behavior was related to prestige in terms of perceived popularity. In contrast, victims lacked status goals, were only reactively aggressive, and low on prestige. That being popular is not the same as being liked could be shown by the fact that bullies were just as rejected as victims by their classmates. Eighth-grade bullies had more direct status goals than fourth-grade bullies, possibly indicating that striving for the popularity component of status increases in early adolescence.     

Should I invite them? Bystanders' inclusivity judgements towards outgroup victims and ingroup bullies in intergroup bullying

This study examined bystanders' judgements of bullying and their inclusivity towards refugee victims and ingroup bully peers. Participants included 587 Turkish adolescents (M_age = 13.14, SD = 1.60) who were presented with two stories: intergroup (Syrian refugee victim) and intragroup (Turkish victim) bullying. They indicated acceptability of bullying, retaliation, and how likely they would be to include victims and bullies in different social contexts. Empathy, prejudice, desired social distance, and peer norms towards Syrian refugees were examined as predictors. Adolescents in schools with a higher number of Syrian peers were more likely to expect they would include the Syrian victim than adolescents in schools with a lower number of Syrian peers. Further, adolescents with higher empathy were more likely to include the Syrian victim while adolescents with higher prejudice and desired social distance were less likely to include the Syrian victim. The results highlight the importance of attending to bystanders' future interactions with victims and bullies, as bystanders have the opportunity to challenge injustice by promoting inclusive school climates in diverse societies. Please refer to the Supplementary Material section to find this article's Community and Social Impact Statement .     

Bullying and victimisation in Scottish secondary schools: Same or separate entities?

Previous research has suggested that bullying is an increasingly severe problem in schools. Such research has approached the phenomenon from two different angles. Earlier research has treated bullying and victimisation as separate entities. However, current research suggests that bullies and victims engage in a special dynamic and interactive relationship, thereby providing the need for studying any similarities and differences between bullies and victims in relation to various factors. The present research has approached bullying and victimisation in both ways. First, we studied differences between bullies, victims, and those not involved in relation to various demographic, school, well‐being, and personality factors to identify factors that separate these three groups. In addition, we studied differences between those involved in bullying/victimisation (one group) and those never involved in relation to the same aforementioned factors to highlight aspects of the development of their special relationship (i.e., common factors). Prevalence rates and types of bullying/victimisation experienced/expressed in Scottish schools were also investigated. It was found that bullying and victimisation, when treated as separate entities, differed in relation to peer self‐esteem, with bullies reporting higher levels of peer self‐esteem than victims. When bullies and victims were treated as one group (involved), they were found to differ from the noninvolved group in relation to various factors, including school, well‐being, and personality factors. The involved group was found to be disadvantaged in relation to all measures used. However, overall results indicated that from all these factors the best predictors of overall involvement as bully, victim, or bully‐victim were Quality of School Life and school stress. The present results support the notion that bullying and victimisation could be treated, by future research, as both separate and/or interactive entities. This is so because bullying and victimisation were found to differ in relation to one personality factor, that is, peer self‐esteem. However, Quality of School Life and school stress, both school factors, were found to be associated with the phenomenon as a whole. Results are discussed in relation to future development of antibullying policy in Scottish schools.Aggr. Behav. 28:45–61, 2002. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Coping and Psychological Distress as a Function of the Bully Victim Dichotomy in Older Children

While it has been well established that bullying and being bullied have negative psychological consequences for children, the more recent literature has suggested a more complex relationship based on social cognition. A debate has arisen as to whether bullies have deficits or strengths in social cognition. In a study of 236 children (112 males and 124 females) aged between 12 and 15 years the current research explored three main aspects of social cognition, problem-solving style, perceived control and optimism in both bullies and victims. The findings suggest that the debate may hinge on whether the bullies are also victims. In this study bullies had higher scores on problem-solving control while bully victims had the lowest scores. These variations corresponded to differences in psychological distress suggesting that bullies may have developed more effective coping strategies with the reverse being true for bully victims     

Bullying Among Scottish Young Offenders: Inmates' Self-Reported Attitudes and Behaviour

Questionnaires were distributed to inmates in all Scottish Young Offender Institutions (YOIs) in an attempt to ascertain the nature and extent of bullying. From a total of 756 distributed, 707 were returned completed, indicating a response rate of 94%. Overall, 29% of inmates reported having been bullied during their current sentence. The most common method of bullying involved verbal threats and spreading untrue rumours. Inmates were self-identified in one of four categories, as either bully, bully and victim, neither bully nor victim, and victim. Self-reported bullies were shown to have spent a greater total amount of time in prison than self-identified victims. Self-reported victims were shown to be less likely to have a record for violent offences than other inmates. The main characteristic identified by inmates as predisposing towards being a bully was knowing a lot of inmates, while the main factor that predisposed toward being a victim was type of offence. Inmates who had spent a greater total amount of time in prison were more likely to be bullies, regardless of current prison location, prison regime, or whether currently on remand or serving a short- or long-term sentence. Results are discussed in relation to factors influencing bullying in YOIs. © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The social and emotional skills of bullies,victims, and bully–victims of Egyptian primary school children

This study examined whether bullies, victims, bully–victims (who are both bullies and victims), and students who reported no or low levels of bullying and victimization differed in their levels of social and emotional skills. Data were collected from 623 children in fifth and sixth grades from four Egyptian elementary schools; their ages ranged from 10 to 12 years. K‐means cluster analysis revealed four groups: bullies (n = 138), victims (n = 178), bully–victims (n = 59), and children who were not involved in bullying behaviour (n = 248). Data were analyzed using multinomial logistic regression. The findings indicated that boys were more involved in bullying behaviour than girls, and both bullies and bully–victims were less likely to adhere to social rules and politeness than children who were not involved in bullying. Both bullies and victims were less aware of the physiological reactions of their emotions than uninvolved children, and were less able to apply social rules in social interaction. Both victims and bully–victims reported less likeability than children not involved in bullying. Verbal sharing, attending to others’ emotions, and analysis of emotions did not have a statistically significant relationship with the probabilities of classifying children to any bullying group versus children not involved in bullying. Social skills were more important than emotional awareness in predicting the likelihood of classifying children in one of the three bullying groups versus children who not involved in bullying. The main conclusion is that social and emotional skills together may provide an effective means of intervention for bullying problems.