NCJ Number
180003
Journal
Child Abuse & Neglect Volume: 23 Issue: 12 Dated: December 1999 Pages: 1253-1262
Date Published
1999
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This study measured the extent of bullying among 1,268 children at age 8 and at age 12, the persistence of this behavior, the relationship between bullying and psychological disturbance and the relationships between bullying and some background factors.
Abstract
Males outnumbered females at both time points among bullies, bully-victims (children who both bully and are victims), and victims. There was a clear difference between the genders among bullies and bully-victims, but the difference was minimal among victims. The number of children involved in bullying declined somewhat during the 4-year period, and a substantial number of children changed status, bullies became bully-victims for example. Nearly half the children involved in bullying at the second check had been involved in bullying 4 years earlier. Those children who were bully-victims in the earlier study were most commonly found to be still involved in bullying 4 years later. At both time points, children involved in bullying were found to have significantly more psychiatric symptoms than other children and to be psychologically disturbed. Tables, references