Abstract
From the theoretical framework offered by the self-determination theory, the objective of the study was to test a predictor model of bullying behaviors based on the physical education teacher’s supportive style, the students’ satisfaction of basic psychological needs, and self-determined motivation. A total of 608 students of both sexes, between 11 and 15 years of age, from primary and secondary schools in the province of Alicante (Spain) voluntarily completed questionnaires to measure each of the variables under study. The design of the study was cross-sectional. The results showed that the autonomy supportive style positively predicted the satisfaction of basic psychological needs, which, in turn, positively predicted self-determined motivation towards physical education. The latter negatively predicted bullying perpetration and bullying victimization. The controlling style presented inverse relationships to those of the autonomy supportive style. These results are in line with the positions of the self-determination theory and underline the potential responsibility of physical education teachers in the struggle against bullying, and how, by supporting autonomy and avoiding a controlling style, they can help reduce bullying perpetration and victimization.
Highlights
Bullying is one of the main problems faced by the educational community
Bullying has been defined as an aggressive behavior that is repeated over time, with the intention of causing physical, psychological, social, or educational harm, where there is an imbalance of power between aggressors and victims, who are not siblings or current dating partners [5]
The maximum likelihood estimation method was used for path analysis and, following the recommendations of Hu and Bentler [53], a combination of several fit indices was used to contrast the adequacy of the proposed models
Summary
The school is a unique microsystem [1] in which teachers have special influence over the students’ relationships and behaviors, and wherein the subject of physical education (PE) could have a specific weight in the development of bullying behaviors [2]. Understanding the relationships between the teacher’s supportive style, students’ motivations in PE, and bullying, would be useful to develop effective prevention strategies for such behaviors. Bullying has been defined as an aggressive behavior that is repeated over time, with the intention of causing physical, psychological, social, or educational harm, where there is an imbalance of power between aggressors and victims, who are not siblings or current dating partners [5]. Victims can be beaten, insulted, threatened, socially excluded, or suffer damage to their property, often in the presence of spectators, who take on multiple roles depending on their attitude toward the bullying event [6]
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