Abstract
Background
Bullying behavior is related to higher levels of internalizing distress and can be defined as including three aspects: frequency, intentionality, and power differential. However, bullying behavior is most often measured using only one aspect: frequency.
Objective
The current study investigated the relative importance of several important constructs associated with bullying and their relations to social-emotional outcomes. Specifically, three aspects of bullying behavior were assessed: frequency, intentionality, and power differential.
Methods
The relations between these aspects of victims of bullying and social-emotional outcomes were investigated in a sample of 612 7th and 8th grade students in a large suburban middle school.
Results
Results showed that power differential and intentionality meaningfully contributed to anxiety, depression, and self-esteem over and above frequency.
Conclusions
Our findings demonstrate strong support for the utility of assessing power differential and intentionality along with frequency of victimization experiences, as there was predictive power in intentionality and power differential above and beyond frequency in relation to concurrent levels of anxiety, depression, and self-esteem.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aiken, L. S., & West, S. G. (1991). Multiple regression: Testing and interpreting interactions. Newbury Park, CA: Sage.
Arseneault, L., Walsh, E., Trzesniewski, K., Newcombe, R., Caspi, A., & Moffitt, T. E. (2006). Bullying victimization uniquely contributes to adjustment problems in young children: A nationally representative cohort study. Pediatrics, 118, 130–138. doi:10.1542/peds.2005-2388.
Bond, L., Carlin, J. B., Thomas, L., Rubin, K., & Patton, G. (2001). Does bullying cause emotional problems? A prospective study of young teenagers. British Medical Journal, 323, 480–484. doi:10.1136/bmj.323.7311.480.
Bosworth, K., Espelage, D. L., & Simon, T. R. (1999). Factors associated with bullying behavior in middle school students. Journal of Early Adolescence, 19(3), 341–362. doi:10.1177/0272431699019003003.
Camodeca, M., Goossens, F. A., Terwogt, M. M., & Schuengel, C. (2002). Bullying and victimization among school-age children: Stability and links to proactive and reactive aggression. Social Development, 11(3), 332–345. doi:10.1111/1467-9507.00203.
Cohen, J. (1988). Statistical power for the behavioral sciences (2nd ed.). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
Cohen, J., Cohen, P., West, S. G., & Aiken, L. S. (2003). Applied multiple regression/correlation analysis for the behavioral sciences (3rd ed.). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Cook, C. R., Williams, K. R., Guerra, N. G., Kim, T. E., & Sadek, S. (2010). Predictors of bulling and victimization in childhood and adolescence: A meta-analytic investigation. School Psychology Quarterly, 25(2), 65–83. doi:10.1037/a0020149.
Cornell, D. G., Sheras, P. L., & Cole, J. C. M. (2006). Assessment of bullying. In S. R. Jimerson & M. J. Furlong (Eds.), Handbook of school violence and school safety: From research to practice (pp. 191–209). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Crick, N. R., Bigbee, M. A., & Howes, C. (1996). Gender differences in children’s normative beliefs about aggression: How do I hurt thee? Let me count the ways. Child Development, 67, 1003–1014. doi:10.1111/1467-8624.ep9704150180.
Davidson, L. M., & Demaray, M. K. (2007). Social support as a moderator between victimization and internalizing/externalizing distress from bullying. School Psychology Review, 36, 383–405.
Demaray, M. K., & Malecki, C. K. (2003). Perceptions of the frequency and importance of social support by students classified as victims, bullies, and bully/victims in an urban middle school. School Psychology Review, 32, 471–489.
Espelage, D. L., & Holt, M. K. (2001). Bullying and victimization during early adolescence: Peer influences and psychosocial correlates. In R. A. Geffner, M. Loring, & C. Young (Eds.), Bullying behavior: Current issues, research, and interventions (pp. 123–142). New York: The Hawthorne Press.
Espelage, D. L., Mebane, S., Swearer, S. M., & Turner, R. (2003). Gender differences in bullying: Moving beyond mean level differences. In D. L. Espelage & S. M. Swearer (Eds.), Bullying in American schools: A social ecological perspective on prevention and intervention. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Espelage, D. L., & Swearer, S. M. (2003). Research on school bullying and victimization: What have we learned and where do we go from here? School Psychology Review, 32, 365–383.
Felix, E. D., Sharkey, J. D., Green, J. G., Furlong, M. J., & Tanigawa, D. (2011). Getting precise and pragmatic about the assessment of bullying: The development of the California Bullying Victimization Scale. Aggressive Behavior, 37(3), 234–237. doi:10.1002/ab.20389.
Furlong, M. J., & Chung, A. (1995). Who are the victims of school violence? A comparison of student non-victims and multi-victims. Education & Treatment of Children, 18(3), 282–298.
Glover, D., Gough, G., Johnson, M., & Cartwright, N. (2000). Bullying in 25 secondary schools: Incidence, impact and intervention. Educational Research, 42, 141–156. doi:10.1080/001318800363782.
Greif, J. L., & Furlong, M. J. (2006). The assessment of school bullying: Using theory to inform practice. Journal of School Violence, 5, 33–50. doi:10.1300/J202v05n03_04.
Hanish, L. D., & Guerra, N. G. (2002). A longitudinal analysis of patterns of adjustment following peer victimization. Development and Psychopathology, 14, 69–89. doi:10.1017/S0954579402001049.
Holt, M. K., Finkelhor, D., & Kantor, G. K. (2007). Multiple victimization experiences of urban elementary school students: Associations with psychosocial functioning and academic performance. Child Abuse and Neglect, 31(5), 503–515. doi:10.1016/j.chiabu.2006.12.006.
Hunter, S. C., Boyle, J. M. E., & Warden, D. (2007). Perceptions and correlates of peer-victimization and bullying. British Journal of Educational Psychology, 77, 797–810. doi:10.1348/000709906X171046.
Kaltiala-Heino, R., Rimpela, M., Rantanen, P., & Rimpela, A. (2000). Bullying at school: An indicator of adolescents at risk for mental disorders. Journal of Adolescence, 23, 661–674.
Kingery, P. (2001). The National School Crime and Safety Survey—Revised Student Form 1. Washington, DC: The Hamilton-Fish Institute.
Kumpulainen, K., & Rasanen, E. (2000). Children involved in bullying at elementary school age: Their psychiatric symptoms and deviance in adolescence: An epidemiological sample. Child Abuse and Neglect, 24, 1567–1577. doi:10.1016/S0145-2134%2800%2900210-6.
Kumpulainen, K., Rasanen, E., & Puura, K. (2001). Psychiatric disorders and the use of mental health services among children involved in bullying. Aggressive Behavior, 27, 102–110. doi:10.1002/ab.3.
Marini, Z. A., Dane, A. V., Bosacki, S. L., & YLC-CURA. (2006). Direct and indirect bully-victims: Differential psychosocial risk factors associated with adolescents involved in bullying and victimization. Aggressive Behavior, 32, 551–569. doi:10.1002/ab.20155.
Menard, S. (1995). Applied logistical regression analysis: Sage University Series no quantitative applications in the social sciences. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Nansel, T. R., Overpeck, M., Pilla, R. S., Rualn, W. J., Simons-Morton, B., & Scheidt, P. (2001). Bullying behaviors among US youth: Prevalence and association with psychosocial adjustment. Journal of the American Medical Association, 285, 2094–2100. doi:10.1001/jama.285.16.2094.
O’Brennan, L. M., Bradshaw, C. P., & Sawyer, A. L. (2009). Examining developmental differences in the social-emotional problems among frequent bullies, victims, and bully/victims. Psychology in the Schools, 46(2), 100–115. doi:10.1002/pits.20357.
O’Brien, R. M. (2007). A caution regarding rules of thumb for variance inflation factors. Quality & Quantity, 41, 673–690. doi:10.1007/s11135-006-9018-6.
O’Moore, M., & Kirkham, C. (2001). Self-esteem and its relationship to bulling behavior. Aggressive Behavior, 27(4), 269–283. doi:10.1002/ab.1010.
Olweus, D. (1997). Bully/victim problems in school: Knowledge base and an effective intervention program. The Irish Journal of Psychology, 18, 170–190. doi:10.1080/03033910.1997.10558138.
Pepler, D. J., Craig, W. M., Connolly, J. A., Yuile, A., McMaster, L., & Jiang, D. (2006). A developmental perspective in bullying. Aggressive Behavior, 32, 376–384. doi:10.1002/ab.20136.
Reynolds, C. R., & Kamphaus, R. W. (2004). The Behavioral Assessment System for Children-Second Edition. Circle Pines, MN: American Guidance Service Inc.
Rigby, K. (1998). The relationship between reported health and involvement in bully/victim problems among male and female secondary school students. Journal of Health Psychology, 3(4), 465–476. doi:10.1177/135910539800300402.
Seals, D., & Young, J. (2003). Bullying and victimization: Prevalence and relationship to gender, grade level, ethnicity, self-esteem, and depression. Adolescence, 38, 735–747.
Solberg, M. E., & Olweus, D. (2003). Prevalence estimation of school bullying with the Olweus Bully/Victim Questionnaire. Aggressive Behavior, 29, 239–268. doi:10.1002/ab.10047.
Sontag, L. M., & Graber, J. A. (2010). Coping with perceived peer stress: Gender-specific and common pathways to symptoms of psychopathology. Developmental Psychology, 46(6), 1605–1620. doi:10.1037/a0020617.
Swearer, S. M. (2001). Bully survey. Unpublished survey, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Swearer, S. M., Song, S. Y., Cary, P. T., Eagle, J. W., & Mickelson, W. T. (2001). Psychosocial correlates in bullying and victimization: The relationship between depression, anxiety, and bully/victim status. In R. A. Geffner, M. Loring, & C. Young (Eds.), Bullying behavior: Current issues, research, and interventions (pp. 95–121). New York: The Hawthorne Press.
Wang, J., Iannotti, R. J., Luk, J. W., & Nansel, T. R. (2010). Co-occurrence of victimization from five subtypes of bullying: Physical, verbal, social exclusion, spreading rumors, and cyber. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 35(10), 1003–1112. doi:10.1093/jpepsy/jsq048.
You, S., Furlong, M. J., Felix, E., Sharkey, J. D., Tanigawa, D., & Green, J. G. (2008). Relations among school connectedness, hope, life satisfaction, and bully victimization. Psychology in the Schools, 45(5), 446–460. doi:10.1002/pits.20308.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Malecki, C.K., Demaray, M.K., Coyle, S. et al. Frequency, Power Differential, and Intentionality and the Relationship to Anxiety, Depression, and Self-Esteem for Victims of Bullying. Child Youth Care Forum 44, 115–131 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10566-014-9273-y
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10566-014-9273-y