Defending behaviors, bullying roles, and their associations with mental health in junior high school students: a population-based study

Abstract

BackgroundStudents should be encouraged to help prevent or stop bullying. However, defending victims of bullying can impact on mental health. It is not only bystanders who may defend victims, but bullies, victims and bully-victims can also have defending behaviors. Nevertheless, most studies of defending behaviors have been limited to an examination of the reactions of bystanders or those not involved in bullying and have ignored the other players. The aim of this study is to investigate the associations between defending behaviors and mental health among bullies, victims, bully-victims and bystanders.MethodsAssociations among defending behaviors, mental health (including depressive symptoms and social anxiety), and bullying experiences were cross-sectionally examined in 3441 students (13–15 years old.) from 20 randomly selected junior high schools in Taiwan using a self-report questionnaire. SAS 9.3 Survey Analysis procedures were used to conduct descriptive analysis and multiple regression models.ResultsDefending behaviors were associated with bullying roles and were higher in victims than in bullies or bystanders. Defending behaviors were positively associated with social anxiety and depressive symptoms. After stratifying by bullying roles, defending behaviors were positively associated with social anxiety in bystanders, and were positively associated with depressive symptoms in victims and bystanders. However, defending behaviors were not significantly associated with mental health indicators in bullies.ConclusionsThe associations between defending behaviors and mental health varied according to bullying roles. The results suggest that bystanders and victims experience more mental health effects than bullies. Intervention programs aimed at preventing bullying should focus on strategies that minimize social anxiety and depression in victims and bystanders, and urge students to help vulnerable peers during bullying events.

Bullying and bystander behaviour and health outcomes among adolescents in Ireland

“…This is in line with a study on the mental health implications of observing bullying, which found that witnessing victimisation has a significant negative impact on multiple indicators of mental health 18. There are several potential explanations for this finding.…”

“…It is possible that bystanders experience empathy towards the victim,14 which could in turn manifest as subjective health symptoms. When witnessing bullying, bystanders face peer pressure18 and risk a decrease in their social standing if they choose to intervene and help the victim. They also risk becoming a victim of bullying themselves.…”

“…Indeed, some research suggests that bystanders are more impacted by bullying than the bully or victim, although further research is required in this area 14. Regarding health consequences for bystanders, a recent study has shown that witnessing bullying was positively associated with poor mental health, including social anxiety and depressive symptoms 18. Bystanders who reported defending the victim were at an increased risk of psychosomatic difficulties19 and internalising problems 20.…”

“…Bystanders who reported defending the victim were at an increased risk of psychosomatic difficulties19 and internalising problems 20. When defending victims, bystanders experience enormous peer pressure, as well as risking becoming a victim of bullying themselves;18 they may even encourage or join the bully in order to avoid becoming a victim themselves, which has its own health implications. To date, research on bystanders has focused on behaviours, which include doing nothing, defending the victim and supporting or encouraging the bullying 16–22…”

A prática de bullying entre escolares brasileiros e fatores associados, Pesquisa Nacional de Saúde do Escolar 2015

“…Over time, bullying has become a serious public health problem affecting school-age children and adolescents 1,2 . It is characterized by intentional and repetitive aggressive behaviors in relationships where there is an imbalance of power 3 .…”