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The focus of this study is on the forms in which the bullying of school teachers by students manifests itself, the characteristics of the students who engage in the bullying, and the manner in which the students who engage in bullying behave in their own peer relationships. The data was gathered from primary and lower secondary school teachers by means of an Internet survey. The answers of 70 teachers who had experienced bullying by their students are examined. The teachers had been exposed to different forms of bullying by students. They had typically been bullied by male students. In most cases, the bullying had been perpetrated by an individual student or a small group of students. According to the teachers' assessment, the majority of the students who bullied them also bullied their fellow students.

This study reports results from cross-cultural comparisons of (a) the frequency of university students' experiences of bullying victimization and perpetration between students, (b) students' experiences of bullying victimization by university personnel, and (c) the breakdown of victimization by the forms of bullying students have experienced. Gender breakdowns are offered. Survey data were collected from undergraduates in a total of 47 universities, using large sample sizes, similar measures and assessment methods in four countries: Argentina (N = 969), Estonia (N = 1053), Finland (N = 4403), and the United States (N = 2072). The results confirmed previous findings which suggest that a notable number of students experience bullying during university studies by fellow students and/or staff members, and a smaller number of students admit to bully their fellow students. The results add to previous knowledge by demonstrating remarkable cultural differences in the prevalence and forms of bullying and suggesting that bullying at the university level starts to transform similar to bullying in the workplace. The overall rates of bullying victimization and perpetration between students were the highest in Argentina, followed by the USA, Finland, and finally Estonia. However, victimization by university personnel was reported the most in Estonia, followed by Argentina, the USA, and Finland. Gender breakdowns in bullying experiences varied between countries. Verbal forms of bullying were common experiences. The most often reported form in all countries was unjustified criticism, belittling or humiliation related to academic performance. Students in the USA reported the highest frequencies in most forms of victimization. The results are discussed by reflecting on higher education features and comparing cultural characteristics of the countries. Practical implications are provided.Publisher's Note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.Maili Pörhölä is an adjunct professor in the School of Humanities at the University of Eastern Finland. Her career has focused on communication research investigating bullying and abuse in social relationships, with a special interest in the transference of these experiences from primary, secondary and higher education contexts to the workplace, examining impacts on individual psychosocial well-being.Kristen Cvancara is a professor in the Department of Communication Studies at Minnesota State University, Mankato, USA. Her areas of expertise include interpersonal communication and social influence. She specializes in the study of verbal aggression, investigating how it is learned and used in romantic, familial, and friendship relationships.Esta Kaal is a lecturer and researcher at Baltic Film, Media, Arts and Communication School, Tallinn University, Estonia. She works in the communication research field investigating organizations in public, business, and university contexts. Her main research interests include envir...

This study examines how individuals' engagement in bullying at school and at university relates to the anxiety they feel in general and in various learning situations in which students interact during their higher education. It was predicted that, of the individuals who have experiences of bullying (in the role of bully, victim, or in a dual role as bully-victim), those who have been subjected to bullying experience more anxiety than do those who have no experience with bullying. A nationally representative sample of Finnish university students (N = 5086) participated in the study by responding to survey questions assessing their experiences of (a) anxiety syndrome, (b) context-specific social anxiety, and (c) situation-specific social anxiety in university learning settings. The findings revealed that victims differed from those with no experience of bullying in that they reported more of having current diagnosis of anxiety syndrome and higher levels of context-specific social anxiety in university learning contexts. This held true for both victims of school bullying and those who were bullied at university. The particular learning situations in which victims reported significantly higher levels of social anxiety were seminars, discussions with their teacher, and taking tests and exams. Implications for educational practices at university, student health services, and future directions for research are discussed.

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