Social support and risk of victimisation: the mediating role of emotional intelligence

Abstract

ABSTRACT During adolescence, parental and peer support and emotional intelligence (EI) may play a protective role against the risk of becoming a victim of bullying. This study aims to assess the role of perceived parental and peer support in promoting individual EI, reducing the risk of victimisation. The sample consisted of 348 Italian middle and high school students. Victimisation risk, perceived parental and peer support, and EI were measured using questionnaires. A cross-sectional study and a Structural Equation Model with latent variables were conducted to assess the mediating role of EI in perceived parental and peer support and victimisation risk. Results indicated that EI fully mediated the association between perceived parent (β = .20, p ≤ .001) and peer support (β = .10, p ≤ .01) and victimisation risk. These data suggest the need to structure training to promote support in the social and family context to increase students’ EI and thus reduce the risk of victimisation among students.