Social Victimization Research Articles

Victims and Perpetrators of Bullying in Physical Education Lessons: The Role of Peer Support, Weight Status, Gender, and Age in Polish Adolescents.

Physical education is a space in which adolescents may become the victims or perpetrators of bullying. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between being a victim or perpetrator of physical, verbal, or social bullying in physical education, and peer support, gender, weight status, and age. The sample consisted of 2, 848 adolescents (1, 512 girls and 1, 336 boys) aged 14-16 from Poland. The participants' body mass index was determined based on their measured height and weight. The Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children questionnaire was used to assess whether the participants were victims or perpetrators of bullying. Peer support during physical education was assessed using the modified Teacher and Classmate Support Scale. The analysis of logistic regressions revealed that low peer support increased the probability of being the victim of physical, verbal, and social bullying (odds ratio [OR], 1.58-2.91) and becoming a perpetrator of bullying (OR, 1.14-1.37) in physical education. Additionally, being overweight increased the likelihood of being a verbal victim (OR, 1.39) and being obese raised the probability of becoming social victim (OR, 1.60). Boys more often experienced (OR, 1.12-2.06) and caused bullying (OR, 1.25-1.89) than girls. Moreover, victims were mainly younger (14-year-old) students (OR, 1.16-1.21), while perpetrators were more often older (15- and 16-year-old) adolescents (OR, 1.12-1.20). This research indicated that peer support can play a key role in preventing bullying in physical education. Physical education teachers should pay special attention to unpopular and rejected students because they most often become the victims and perpetrators of bullying. Creating a climate that fosters the development of high peer support might protect adolescents from becoming a victim-and a perpetrator-of bullying in physical education.

Behavioral and psychological consequences of social identity-based aggressive victimization in high school youth

ABSTRACT Research suggests many youth report being victimized in school due to ptheir social identities (e.g., race, gender, sexual orientation). We compared the consequences of social identity-based victimization (SIBV) to general victimization wherein adolescents are victimized by peers for other reasons (e.g., competition, a perceived insult). An online survey administered to 471 high school students yielded 777 victimization reports. 71.2% of the students reported at least one recent vicitimization, with 53.8% reporting SIBV. Race-based victimization was the most prevalent, and SIBV was more common online than offline. Psychological reactions (i.e., negative affect, self-esteem, and perceived costs) and behavioral responses (i.e., avoidant, antisocial, prosocial, and self-harm behavior), were heightened for youth reporting SIBV. As anticipated, psychological reactions significantly mediated the effect of SIBV on behavioral responses.

David Goodis’s Noir Fiction: The American Dream’s Paralysis

In its depiction of marginalized characters trapped within inner-city slums, David Goodis’s postwar fiction of the late 1940s through the 1950s constitutes a noir critique of the American Dream’s paralysis. The defining elements of that paradigm—romantic fulfillment, family cohesion, upward mobility, suburban escape, egalitarian success, material prosperity—are systematically shown to be beyond attainment by the underprivileged and, thus, a mechanism of social victimization. At the same time, despite his oeuvre’s unremitting bleakness, Goodis valorizes his protagonists’ capacity for endurance amid their alienation and disenfranchisement. During the fraught era of Cold War anxiety masked by mainstream conformism, this author’s down-and-outers recognize the truth that “There’s no success like failure, / And … failure’s no success at all.” His pulp novels significantly extend late-modernist themes of fragmentation, entropy, and despair.

Risk Factors for Bullying Victimization in Children with Neurofibromatosis Type 1 (NF1).

Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is an autosomal disorder associated with numerous physical stigmata. Children with NF1 are at known risk for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), academic struggles, and significant social difficulties and adverse social outcomes, including bullying victimization. The primary aim of this study was to identify risk factors associated with bullying victimization in children with NF1 to better inform clinicians regarding targets for prevention and clinical intervention. Children and a parent completed questionnaires assessing the bully victim status, and parents completed a measure of ADHD symptoms. Analyses were completed separately for parent-reported victimization of the child and the child’s self-report of victimization. According to the parent report, results suggest ADHD symptoms are a significant risk factor for these children being a target of bullying. Findings for academic disability were not conclusive, nor were findings related to having a parent with NF1. Findings indicate the need for further research into possible risk factors for social victimization in children with NF1. Results provide preliminary evidence that may guide clinicians working with children with NF1 and their parents in identifying higher-risk profiles that may warrant earlier and more intensive intervention to mitigate later risk for bullying victimization.

Fear of Bullying Victimization in Middle School: Types of Victimization and Advocacy Considerations

This study examines the relation between fear of victimization, types of victimization, and advocacy, adjusted for grade and gender on 834 students from 16 Iranian public middle schools. Multilevel linear modeling was used to explore relations between types of victimization and fear of victimization. The results showed that higher fear of victimization was associated with higher verbal, social, and cyber victimization, and higher peer advocacy. The cyber victimization experience had the most impact on fear of bullying victimization (β = 0.15, P < 0.001). Also, higher teacher and peer advocacy were related to higher fear of bullying victimization (β = 0.11, P < 0.001 for teacher advocacy and β = 0.06, P < 0.05 for peer advocacy). Implications of these findings for school anti-bullying programs as well as directions for future research are discussed.

Medijske stereotipizacije vulnerabilnih grupa u Srbiji

The paper discusses the contemporary features of stereotypes in media content, with special emphasis on practice and the consequences of stereotyping vulnerable social groups. Particular attention is paid to reviewing the prevalence and modalities of gender, racial, and ethnic stereotypes in Serbian mass media, as well as the consequences of social stereotyping affecting women, minority ethnic groups, people with mental disorders, and members of other vulnerable social groups, including their increased exposure to social marginalization, discrimination, violence, and secondary victimization. The content analysis of electronic editions of three dailies in Serbia of different newspaper format and editorial approach (Politika, Blic, and Kurir), published within the period from January 10 to February 7, 2021, was conducted to gain a closer insight into current representation, forms and other features of media stereotyping of various vulnerable social groups. The obtained findings confirm the initial assumption that stereotypes, especially gender, as well as those directed at minority ethnic groups, are expressed and routinely represented in electronic media content available to the general public, in which these groupsare continuously presented in a very narrow repertoire of social roles, primarily by tabloid dailies Additional content analysis of electronic editions of dailies in Serbia over the past five years features stereotypical portrayal of Roma, and persons with mental health disorders as categories of citizens who are predominantly represented in negative content in the media, with the absence of analytical texts and content dealing with the social background of the circumstances in which they find themselves. Furthermore, no attention is paid to their social needs, which contributes to the strengthening of stereotypes, intolerance, insensitivity, or irrational fear of members of certain vulnerable social groups. In conclusion, the importance of the role of today's mass media in maintaining, but also in deconstructing negative social stereotypes, that is, humanization of modern cultural and social space and denormalization of violence directed at vulnerable groups based on prejudice,isemphasized.

Contextual and Individual Predictors of Bullying and Victimization in Slovenia: Positive Youth Development Perspective

Bullying and victimization pose a serious risk for youth optimal development due to numerous negative short- and long-term consequences. One of the models with a focus on adolescents that can serve as a theoretical framework in designing prevention and intervention programmes targeting bullying and victimization is Positive Youth Development Perspective. The Positive Youth Development perspective assumes that with the positive interplay between developmental assets (internal and external youth resources) and the 5Cs (competence, confidence, character, caring, connection) the probability of bullying and victimization lowers. In the present study, we have investigated the predictive power of developmental assets and the 5Cs for bullying (verbal and social bullying) and victimization (verbal and social victimization) on a sample of older adolescents and emerging adults ( N = 434, 80.9% girls, M age = 21.65). We used The Developmental Assets Profile (Benson, 2003), PYD questionnaire (Geldhof et al., 2014) and Adolescent Peer Relations Instrument: Bully/Target (APRI-BT, Marsh et al., 2011). The findings show that gender, age, and Caring are significant predictors of verbal bullying while age, Empowerment, and Caring are significant predictors of social bullying. Furthermore, gender, age, Constructive use of time, Confidence and Connection are significant predictors of verbal victimization and age, Empowerment, Constructive use of time, Confidence, and Connection are significant predictors of social victimization. The implications for practice and future research are discussed.

Who is in the revolving door? Policy and practice implications of recurrent reports to adult protective services

ABSTRACT Repeat referral to adult protective services APS (recurrence) is a much-discussed topic among APS agencies as it may indicate ongoing harm, yet there is limited research examining prevalence or causes. This paper provides a foundational investigation of recurrence within a California APS county program. Drawing from thirty-three months of de-identified reports, we used logistic regression to examine the impact of intake report characteristics on repeat referral within one year after baseline case closure. One-fifth of the sample was recurrent (19.9%, n=987/4,958), with self-neglect being the most common type of report to recur (14.3%, n=307/2,141). Overall recurrence was predicted by female gender, older age, living alone, and multiple elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation (ANE) types reported at baseline, and report placed by social service provider, friends, family, landlords, and victim self-reports. Reporters personally related to the victim and social service providers are potential partners in identifying ANE, and alternate intervention approaches may be necessary.

Peer-Related Factors as Moderators between Overt and Social Victimization and Adjustment Outcomes in Early Adolescence.

Peer victimization is a pervasive problem for early adolescents, yet not all victims experience the same adjustment difficulties. The prominence of peer social relationships during adolescence suggests that peer-related factors (e.g., peer support) may be important for victim outcomes. This study investigated the moderating effects of three peer-related factors (peer support, peer preference, and social status) on the association between peer victimization (overt and social) and adjustment outcomes (loneliness and aggression) using a longitudinal design. Self-report and peer nomination data were collected from 321 participants from three middle schools in the Northeastern United States during the fall and spring of seventh grade (Mage = 13.01; 49% African American, 31% White, 19% Hispanic). The findings suggest that peer-related factors contribute to victim outcomes. Both forms of victimization were positively associated with loneliness under high peer preference and were negatively associated with aggression under low peer preference. Sex differences were also noted. Overt victimization was associated with decreased aggression only among girls under low peer preference, low peer support, or high social status. The findings suggest that parents, school officials, and mental health professionals should consider peer-related factors in providing support for victims, especially female victims.

Details of the Contents of Paranoid Thoughts in Help-Seeking Adolescents with Psychotic-Like Experiences and Continuity with Bullying and Victimization: A Pilot Study

Background: Psychosis recognizes an interaction between biological and social environmental factors. Adversities are now recognized to be consistently associated with psychotic-like experiences (PLEs). The purpose of this study was to describe the contents of paranoid symptoms and to focus on their relationship with bullying and victimization in help-seeking adolescents. Methods: Help-seeking adolescents who screened positive for PLEs participated in the study. They performed a battery self-report questionnaire for data collection (paranoia: the Specific Psychotic Experiences Questionnaire (SPEQ); the content of paranoid thoughts: the Details of Threat (DoT); bullying victimization: the Multidimensional Peer Victimization Scale (MPVS); depression: the Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI); and anxiety: the Multidimensional Anxiety Scale (MASC)). Results: The participants were 50 adolescents (52% female; mean age: 170 months). The contents of their paranoid symptoms were related to victimization and, in particular, the certainty of threats was correlated with physical (0.394, p < 0.01) and verbal bullying (0.394, p < 0.01), respectively. The powerfulness of the threats correlated with verbal victimization (0.295, p < 0.05). The imminence of the threats was linked to verbal (0.399, p < 0.01) victimization. Hours under threat correlated with verbal (0.415, p < 0.01) victimization. The sureness of the threat had a moderate correlation with physical (0.359, p < 0.05) and verbal (0.443, p < 0.01) victimization, respectively. The awfulness of the threat was linked to social manipulation (0.325, p < 0.05). Conclusions: We described the content of the persecutory symptoms. The powerfulness, imminence, sureness, and awfulness of threats correlated with the level of physical, verbal and social manipulation victimization. Teachers and family must actively monitor early signs of bullying victimization, and school psychologists should promote preventive and therapeutic intervention. From a social psychiatry perspective, the prevention of bullying victimization is necessary.

How Female Disclosure Recipients React to Women Survivors: The Impact of Rape Acknowledgment and Rejection of Rape Myths

Because female rape survivors who are listened to and believed have been found to have fewer difficulties, it is essential that researchers examine factors that influence the social reactions survivors receive. The present experiment included 397 female U.S. college-students who were randomly assigned to read a vignette that either reflected an acknowledged rape survivor (i.e., used the word “rape” to describe the incident) or described an unacknowledged rape survivor (e.g., used the word “miscommunication” to describe the incident). The college women then answered questions about their own levels of rape myth rejection and indicated on measures of positive social reactions, negative social reactions, and victim blame how they would respond to the hypothetical rape survivor. The results demonstrated that the female participants’ answers on positive social reactions and victim blame were a function of both the survivors’ acknowledgment status and the participants’ rape myth rejection. The interaction was not supported for negative social reactions, but this non-finding may have stemmed from a restricted range of variance and overall low scores on that variable. The results are discussed in the context of both individual and systemic interventions that may lead to more positive, helpful, and affirming responses to survivors via the reduction of rape myths.

The Adolescent Peer Relations Instrument- Bully/Target: Measurement Invariance Across Gender, Age, and Clinical Status.

Adolescent Peer Relations Instrument-Bully/Target (APRI-BT) is a multidimensional scale designed to assess bullying involvement both as target and perpetrator. Although existing research has shown that the APRI-BT satisfies the assumption of measurement invariance across age and gender, these findings come from western individualistic countries (e.g., Australia). This study aimed to investigate the factorial structure and measurement invariance across age, gender, and clinical status in a sample of Romanian youths. Participants were 1,024 adolescents, 10 to 18 years, recruited from both community and clinical setting. Our results confirmed a six first-order factor structure and two second-order factors (Bully including Bullying Physical, Bullying Verbal, Bullying Social and Victimization including Physical Victimization, Verbal Victimization, Social Victimization). In addition, measurement invariance across age, gender, and clinical status was demonstrated. This study identifies APRI-BT as an instrument with solid psychometric proprieties for measuring bullying and victimization among preadolescents and adolescents.

Peer victimisation and depression among gender conforming and non-conforming Thai adolescents

Like most low- and middle-income countries, Thailand is facing an increasing burden of depressive disorders among adolescents, but research and services for them are largely neglected. This study explored the association between types of peer victimisation, gender non-conformity, health risk behaviours, and depressive symptoms among Thai students aged 13–18 years. Overall, prevalence of depressive symptoms was 14.7% (95% CI: 12.6–15.6), 12.2% (95% CI: 9.5–13.9) among male students and 16.5% (95% CI: 13.8–18.0) among female students. Among both sexes, social and sexual victimisation in the past month were strongly associated with depressive symptoms in the past week. Gender non-conforming female adolescents, as well as male and female adolescents who had experienced sexual and social victimisation, had a high burden of depressive symptoms. Mental health professionals and educators working with young people in Thailand should consider assessment for clinically significant depressive disorders.

Autism Spectrum Disorder and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder: An unexplored co-occurrence of conditions.

People with Autism Spectrum Disorder show an increased risk of experiencing traumatic events, particularly social victimization. However, Autism Spectrum Disorder and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder co-occurrence was hardly studied. We examined exposure to traumatic life events and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder symptoms in adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder vs typical adults. Two groups took part in this study: Twenty-five adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder and 25 typical adults of similar age and male to female ratio. Participants completed questionnaires on potentially traumatic life events of social and non-social nature, as well as on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder symptoms related to their most distressing event. Participants also filled out an autism traits questionnaire. Results showed a higher Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder rate in the Autism Spectrum Disorder group (32%) compared with the typical group (4%). Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder reported more Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder symptoms, particularly re-experiencing and increased physiological arousal, compared with typical adults, although the latter was elevated only in females with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Participants with Autism Spectrum Disorder, especially females, reported more negative life events, particularly social events, than typical adults. Sixty percent of Autism Spectrum Disorder participants, but only 20% of typical participants, chose a social event as their most distressing event. Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder who were also suspected as having Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (based on their questionnaires) presented poorer social skills compared with those with Autism Spectrum Disorder alone. Results indicate that individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder are more susceptible to trauma and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, particularly due to social stressors. Females with Autism Spectrum Disorder may be especially vulnerable to Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

An Examination of Bullying Roles and Moral Disengagement Using Latent Analysis

ABSTRACT Bullying persists as a concern in schools, including the question of why some children bully. One idea differentiating bullying roles (e.g., bully, victim, bully-victim) is that some individuals are morally disengaged, or able to disconnect their moral understanding and behavior. The present study examined types of bullying involvement and moral disengagement. To address the methodological debate within the bullying literature, the present study used latent analysis. The findings revealed that bullying and victimization behaviors vary by degree of involvement. The present study found that moral disengagement was related to students’ degree of participation in bullying; students in the bully-victim class had the highest levels of moral disengagement, followed by students in the victim class, social victim class, and outsider class. Further research should explore moral engagement as a strategy to enhance anti-bullying efforts.

Problems with social acceptance and social victimization predict substance use among U.S. Reserve/Guard soldiers.

The effects of negative social interactions/experiences on substance use have largely been studied in civilian populations, but less is known about United States Army Reserve/National Guard (USAR/NG) soldiers-a high-risk group. We examined the associations between problems with social acceptance, social victimization, and substance use among USAR/NG soldiers, and examined potential differences by deployment history. The sample consisted of soldiers who completed baseline and 1-year follow-up assessments (N = 445) of Operation: SAFETY, an ongoing study of USAR/NG soldiers. We examined the effects of baseline problems with social acceptance/social victimization on nonmedical use of prescription drugs (NMUPD), illicit drug use, frequent heavy drinking (FHD), and alcohol problems at follow-up. Significant effects were small in magnitude but consistent in direction. Greater problems with social acceptance were associated with higher odds of NMUPD and illicit drug use. Greater social victimization was associated with higher odds of NMUPD and illicit drug use. There were no differences by deployment history. Problems with social acceptance/social victimization were not associated with FHD or alcohol problems. Problems with social acceptance/social victimization may contribute to drug use among USAR/NG soldiers. Intervention programs should address social issues, regardless of deployment history.

Children’s mu suppression is sensitive to witnessing others’ social victimization

ABSTRACT Empathy has been a key focus of social, developmental, and affective neuroscience for some time. However, research using neural measures to study empathy in response to social victimization is sparse, particularly for young children. In the present study, 58 children’s (White, non-Hispanic; five to nine years old) mu suppression was measured using electroencephalogram methods (EEG) as they viewed video scenarios depicting social injustices toward White and Black children. We found evidence of increased mu suppression in response to social victimization; however, contrary to well-documented findings of ingroup racial bias in empathic responses among adults, we found no evidence of racial bias in mu suppression in young children. Implications of these findings for neuroscience research on empathy and the development of ingroup bias are discussed.

Есть ли шанс возродить французскую промышленность?

Deindustrialization in advanced economies has become one of the consequences of economic globalization. This process has been developing over the past four decades, however, the destruction of industrial potential has been seriously discussed recently. The article analyzes the process of France&rsquo;s entry into the global economy and the subsequent partial destruction of the national industry. The French model of entry into the open economy was distinguished by its own characteristics: the speed and scale of the transformation, accompanied by rising unemployment and curbing income inequality. French society was not ready for globalization and perceived it as a threat. Deindustrialization, which took place against the background of structural and technological restructuring of production, changed the social structure. The first social victims were workers. In contrast to a reduction in the number of workers in France, the representation of top and middle managers increased. At the same time, fragmentation of the middle class took place; its lower strata were threatened by unemployment and lumpenization. In French society, new social divisions appeared, and socio-spatial imbalances grew. At the end of the global financial and economic crisis of 2008&ndash;2009, the European countries recalled the industrial policy. France is currently endorsing a new program for development of an innovative economy. In the case of its implementation or non-implementation, three scenarios are possible. The &ldquo;Step into the Future&rdquo; scenario involves the implementation of a program for development of an innovative economy and modernization of society. New industries will create new jobs, contribute to the emergence of new activities and new professions related to the assimilation and processing of information. The &ldquo;French Desert&rdquo; is possible if the first scenario cannot be implemented. The &ldquo;Back to Etatism!&rdquo; scenario implies a technocratic version of modernization and strengthening state influence on society.

Harm inflation: Making sense of concept creep

ABSTRACT “Concept creep” is the gradual semantic expansion of harm-related concepts such as bullying, mental disorder, prejudice, and trauma. This review presents a synopsis of relevant theoretical advances and empirical research findings on the phenomenon. It addresses three fundamental questions. First, it clarifies the characterisation of concept creep by refining its theoretical and historical dimensions and presenting studies investigating the change in harm-related concepts using computational linguistics. Second, it examines factors that have caused concept creep, including cultural shifts in sensitivity to harm, societal changes in the prevalence of harm, and intentional meaning changes engineered for political ends. Third, the paper develops an account of the consequences of concept creep, including social conflict, political polarisation, speech restrictions, victim identities, and progressive social change. This extended analysis of concept creep helps to understand its mixed implications and sets a multi-pronged agenda for future research on the topic.

Аутоагрессия как предиктор виктимного поведения личности

The article focuses on autoaggressive behaviour in the context of victimisation risks. The authors consider a number of approaches that define autoaggressive manifestations in Russian and foreign psychology. It is noted that a tendency towards self-aggression may be induced by various causes found within an individual’s personality and in the external environment. Particularly, the efforts of the parents to restrain and control a child’s aggression by using corporal punishment only reinforce and increase the risk of self-injurious behaviour. The main purpose of the research is to study autoaggression as a predictor of victim behaviour. In order to address the issue identified as the main focus of the study, the authors present the results of empirical research conducted at Novosibirsk State Pedagogical University on a sample group of students, both male and female, aged 18–23 years. In total, the study involved 70 people. Regression analysis was applied to determine the predictors contributing to different manifestations of victim behaviour. As a result, the propensity for non-critical behaviour was linked to neurotic spontaneous aggression, injurious reactive aggression, and suppression of anger. The tendency towards highly social victimisation behaviour was connected to anger, irritability, reactive aggression, and self-injurious behaviour. The propensity for dependent and helpless behaviour correlates with the levels of hopelessness, inhibition of aggression, and suppression of anger. The tendency towards self-injurious behaviour and self-destruction is influenced by auto-aggression, depression, irritability, and inhibition of aggression. In conclusion, the collected results suggest that there is a set of variables associated with the different manifestations of victim behaviour.