Victim, perpetrator, or witness of peer sexual harassment? Middle-school students’ movements between roles across time

Abstract

ABSTRACT Previous research on peer sexual harassment at school has mostly considered students’ involvement in the victim role while overlooking the roles of witnessing and perpetration, and students’ movements between different roles over time. In this two-wave longitudinal study (N = 783) conducted in Sweden, we examined students’ involvement in peer sexual harassment from ages 10 to 11 years to identify patterns of movements within and between roles. Through illustrations and Configural Frequency Analysis, we identified three central patterns. First, many students remained in the same roles across time, especially those who were involved in a combination of roles. Secondly, students often first encountered peer sexual harassment by witnessing it and then became targets themselves. Finally, students who perpetrated peer sexual harassment often had previous experience with other roles in peer sexual harassment. The findings suggest that social learning processes may influence how students move between different roles over time.