Violence at School and Bullying in School Environments in Peru: Analysis of a Virtual Platform

Abstract

BackgroundSchool violence and bullying are prevalent problems that affect health in general, especially through the development of emotional and behavioral problems, and can result in the deterioration of the academic performance of the student victim. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence rates of aggressive behaviors according to types of school violence and bullying, sociodemographic characteristics, and variation by department, region, and time in the period between 2014 and 2018 in Peru.MethodsThe design was observational and cross-sectional based on data from the Specialized System for Reporting Cases of School Violence (Sistema Especializado en Reporte de Casos sobre Violencia Escolar—SíseVe) in Peru, which covers a population of 23,641 students at the initial, primary, and secondary levels of Basic Regular Education [Educación Básica Regular (EBR)], for the 2014–2018 period. The prevalence rates of the different types of school violence and bullying, the sociodemographic characteristics, and the variation by department, region, and time in the period between 2014 and 2018 were estimated.ResultsPsychological violence/bullying occurred at higher prevalence rates (185.8 and 62.6 per 100,000 residents). Women from public institutions reported greater sexual violence, mostly by teachers (67.8%) than by other students (32.2%). The Selva region had the highest prevalence rate of sexual violence (10.1 per 100,000 residents). The departments of Tacna and Piura had the highest and lowest rates of psychological/verbal violence and bullying in 2018 (95.79 and 25.31 per 100,000 residents).ConclusionPsychological/verbal violence and bullying is highly prevalent among students; women report being victims of sexual violence by administrative personnel of public institutions. The Selva region had the highest rate of sexual violence, and Piura and Tacna had the highest and lowest rates of violence and psychological/verbal bullying. Based on these results, it is suggested to conduct evidence-based prevention programs in Peruvian schools to reduce these social problems.

Space Analysis of School Violence in the Educational Setting of Peru, 2019

“…Physical violence is less common than psychological/verbal aggression, consistent with reports from other countries [ 41 ]. The prevalence rates of psychological/verbal violence were similar to those reported in Peruvian studies [ 29 , 42 , 43 ]. According to a multinational investigation of Latin America, Argentina, Peru, Costa Rica, and Uruguay had the highest prevalence rates of psychological/verbal violence among children [ 44 ].…”

“…The applicability of this technique to identify the hotspots for any kind of school violence has not yet been studied in Peru. In particular, few studies have explicitly looked at the violent acts committed by teachers or school staff, especially those who have participated in violence with sexual connotations [ 29 ]. For the above, the present study aimed to determine regional prevalence rates, average prevalence by aggressor type, and provincial spatial conglomerates for every kind of school violence reported in educational settings in Peru during 2019.…”

School Climate, Moral Disengagement and, Empathy as Predictors of Bullying in Adolescents

“…World prevalence data, including those of Spain (Chan and Wong, 2015b , 2020 ; Zych et al, 2017a ; Inchley et al, 2020 ; Arhuis-Inca et al, 2021 ), justify the concern of the scientific and educational community to make further progress in the study of this complex social phenomenon to eradicate it. For this purpose, one of the main concerns has been and continues to be an in-depth understanding of the causes that lead young people to perpetrate bullying.…”

Exposición a violencia en el hogar y victimización por acoso escolar en adolescentes peruanos

“…Por ejemplo, un estudio poblacional en 50 ciudades de Perú que incluyó 516 colegios y a 65.041 escolares de 11 a 19 años, reportó una prevalencia de victimización escolar de 56,4% 20 . Otro estudio transversal de periodo (2014 a 2018) basado en registros de casos de violencia y acoso escolar ejecutado por el MINEDU encontró una prevalencia de 62,6% de acoso escolar 21 .…”