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This paper examines the moderating role of problem-talk partnerships with peers who are rejected, victimized, or unpopular on links between self-perceived victimization by peers and depressive symptoms. Problem-talk partnerships are friendships that involve frequent discussion of problems and personal struggles. 267 adolescents (152 girls; mean age of 14.4 years) participated in a short-term prospective study with identical measures administered in two annual waves. The adolescents completed a battery of self-report questionnaires assessing peer victimization and depression. They also completed a peer nomination inventory and identified friends with whom they frequently discuss problems. High levels of peer nominated victimization, social rejection, and unpopularity among problem-talk partners were linked to elevated associations between self-reported victimization and depressive symptoms. The effects for unpopularity levels among problem-talk partners were moderated by gender. Compared to boys, girls' adjustment was more strongly influenced by unpopularity among problem-talk partners. Conversely, friendships with peers who were not problem-talk partners did not have a consistent moderating role. The full pattern of findings highlights the need to consider the social adjustment of dyadic partners when examining the psychosocial impact of perceived victimization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Bullying is an intentional abusive behaviour, caused by a power imbalance, which can leave long-lasting effects over the mental and physical health of a victim. In order to combat such situations, victims need someone that can help them, a mediator who is able to reduce the oppression. This paper presents temporal-causal network models related to victimization and its support, based upon social and cognitive literature. The aim of the study is to explore responses of a victim after being bullied and how a mediator can support a victim. Here, a 'fight or fly strategy' is presented along with the role of mediator in order to support a victim. Subsequently, the model is tuned and analysed with respect to derived empirical data. Lastly, simulation experiments are compared with a publically available dataset, to verify the behaviour of the model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peer victimization (PV) is a common and serious problem in school contexts, which hinders adolescents' emotional development and social adaptation. The present study aimed to test the longitudinal relationship between PV and the increase of depressive symptoms (DSs) among Chinese mid-late adolescents using a two-wave longitudinal design and examine the buffering effects of self-compassion (SC) and parental autonomy support (PAS) on this relationship. A relatively large sample of Chinese high school students (N = 722, 52.1% boys; age at Time 2 = 16.23 years old, SD = 0.79) were surveyed annually at two time points. The results showed that PV at Time 1 positively predicted DSs at Time 2 after controlling for the DSs at Time 1. In addition, SC and PAS moderated the longitudinal relationship between PV and the development of DSs, while such moderating effects only existed in girls but not in boys. Specifically, the positive relationship between PV and DSs was non-significant among girls with higher levels of SC or PAS. Our findings highlighted that SC and PAS might be important protective factors buffering against DSs for victimized girls. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: Investigators have examined the moderating effects of young people's relationships with parents, teachers, and peers on victimization and on adverse outcomes such as drug use. However, the moderating influence of religious affiliation on the association between peer victimization and illicit drug use, the focus of this paper, has seldom been examined. Method: Participants were 638 low-income African American youth ages 12–22 (mean age = 15.8; 54% female and 46% male) in Chicago, IL. We conducted hierarchical logistic regression analyses to examine the moderating effect of religious affiliation on the relationship between peer victimization and illicit drug use. Results: Youths who had been victimized by peers were at elevated risk for illicit drug use. Victimized peers who reported a religious affiliation or who attended religious services were less likely to use illicit drugs than other youths. Involvement in prayer or meditation per se did not influence the relationship between peer victimization and illicit drug use. Conclusions: Affiliation and participation in religious services may be important intervention points in efforts to prevent or reduce illicit drug use. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A substantive number of children and adolescents are bullied by their peers, with serious risks for the victims' emotional, behavioral, physical, and academic adjustment. However, while the immediate and short-term consequences of peer victimization in childhood and adolescence are very well documented, knowledge about the potential long-term consequences for victims' functioning once they reach adulthood is only slowly emerging. Based on prospective, longitudinal data from different countries, the 4 papers in this special section investigate the association between peer victimization suffered in childhood and adolescence and victims' developmental outcomes in late adolescence/early adulthood. This introduction highlights the major findings of each paper and discusses the implications for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined whether varying dimensions of teacher-child relationship quality and gender moderated associations between knowledge of negative emotion-eliciting situations and peer victimization among Black preschoolers (60 boys, 54 girls) who ranged in age from 35 to 65 months. Fifty-one children had a Black teacher, 46 had a White teacher, and 17 had a Latine teacher. All teachers were female. Knowledge of negative emotion-eliciting situations was assessed directly in the fall. Lead teachers reported on teacher-child relationship quality between September and December. A second teacher completed peer victimization ratings in the spring of the following year. When teacher-child closeness was high, there was a positive association between knowledge of negative emotion-eliciting situations and physical victimization, but a negative association emerged when teacher-child closeness was low. In accord with the victim schema model that undergirded this study, knowledge of negative emotion-eliciting situations was negatively related to physical victimization for children who experienced high teacher-child conflict and dependency. Black teachers perceived more relational victimization. Our findings highlight the need for further examination of peer victimization among young Black children and suggest that identifying the individual and ecological correlates of peer victimization should be a priority for school psychologists working in early educational contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bias-based (also called identity-based) harassment refers specifically to a subset of peer victimization that targets a person's identity, such as their gender identity, religion, immigration status, sexual orientation, race, or ethnicity. Research indicates that bias-based harassment is a particularly devastating form of victimization that has an even stronger association with poor mental health and school functioning than general forms of bullying and harassment that do not target identity characteristics. In the current study, we used the AmeriSpeak Teen Panel, a US nationally representative panel of youth ages 13–17, to examine the prevalence and predictors of bias-based harassment. Youth (N = 639) completed a self-report survey about their experiences with victimization and perpetration of bias-based harassment. A series of regression models tested the association of individual youth demographic characteristics with reports of bias-based harassment victimization and perpetration. Overall, 28.2% of youth reported experiences of bias-based victimization, and 12.4% reported bias-based perpetration. Bias-based harassment most often targeted students' race, sexual orientation, and gender identity. Results have implications for school-based prevention and intervention planning to address bias-based harassment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: This study aimed to assess the rates of peer bullying and stress-coping strategies in adolescents with SAD and to investigate the relationship between SAD and different types of peer bullying. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study included ninety-two adolescents aged 14 to 17 years with SAD and one hundred-five typically developing adolescents. A semi-structured psychiatric interview, the Social Anxiety Scale for Adolescents (SAS-A), the Peer Bullying Scale-Adolescent Form (PBS-AF), and the Coping Scale for Adolescents (CSA) were applied to all participants. Peer bullying was classified into six types (physical, verbal, exclusion, spreading rumors, attacks against property, and sexual) and two roles (bullying and victimization). Results: On every subscale of the PBS-AF victimization dimension, the SAD group's mean scores were significantly higher than those of the controls. Regarding the PBSAF bullying dimension, the Physical Bullying and Sexual Bullying scores of the SAD group were significantly lower than the control group, but the Isolation/Exclusion scores were significantly higher than the control group. Compared to the control group, the mean scores of Active Coping of CSA were significantly lower, while the mean scores of Negative Coping and Avoidant Coping were significantly higher in the SAD group. The SAS-A's total score had a significant positive correlation with all subscales of the PBS-AF victimization dimension. Age, gender, academic performance, and psychiatric comorbidity had a predictive effect on some of the victimization dimension variables of peer bullying. Conclusion: This study has revealed that SAD is an important risk factor for peer victimization. The routine psychiatric examination of adolescents with SAD should also include a screening for peer bullying. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anti-academic norms have proven to affect the educational strategies of adolescents. The determinants related to the experience of anti-academic norms and especially its link to ethnic inequality within the educational system have not received sufficient attention in European educational research. Hence, this study examines which students perceive anti-academic norms by investigating the role of students' ethnic group categorization, their experiences with (non-) ethnic discrimination, and the role of ethnic belonging. A quantitative analysis of 2,728 students from 45 secondary schools in Flanders showed that majority students perceive more anti-academic norms than students who are descendants from labor migrants. Both ethnic and non-ethnically discriminated students experience more anti-academic norms compared to non-discriminated students. Overall, students' ethnic identity belonging is a promotive factor and thus associated with lower anti-academic norms. Furthermore, the results also indicate that students from both high and low status ability groups (tracks) are more at risk of perceiving anti-academic norms. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The overall objective of this study was to investigate the longitudinal association between diffusion of responsibility and pro-aggressive bystander behavior across three time points in upper elementary education. This three-wave longitudinal study included 1905 Swedish students who completed a questionnaire in at least one of the three waves: the fourth (Mage = 10.56), fifth (Mage = 11.55), and/or sixth grades (Mage = 12.58). Both traditional and random intercept cross-lagged panel models revealed a reciprocal relationship between pro-aggressive bystanding and diffusion of responsibility from the fourth to fifth grades, whereas the only significant cross-lagged path from the fifth to sixth grades was from pro-aggression to diffusion of responsibility in the traditional cross-lagged panel model. Thus, this study provides evidence for bidirectional longitudinal associations between diffusion of responsibility and pro-aggressive bystander behavior but did not support a full cross-lagged bidirectional model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – Recent studies indicate that exposure to physical punishment is associated with both aggressive behavior and peer victimization at school. The purpose of this paper is to explore the bidirectional relationship between aggressive behavior and peer victimization as outcomes of physical punishment, as well as the role of depressive symptoms. Design/methodology/approach – A sample of 2,424 Finnish upper primary school pupils (1,282 girls, 1,148 boys, mean age=14.2, SD=1.0) completed an online survey during class. Two conditional process models were applied using a macro for SPSS developed by Hayes (2012). Findings – Exposure to physical punishment was found to be associated with both aggressive behavior and peer victimization at school. The effect on victimization was partially mediated by aggressive behavior and depressive symptoms, whereas the effect on aggressive behavior was partially mediated by peer victimization experiences but not by depressive symptoms. The relationship between physical punishment and peer victimization was somewhat stronger for girls than for boys, but this effect was not accounted for by gender differences in depressive symptoms or aggressive behavior. Originality/value – Few studies to date have addressed the connection between aggressive behavior and peer victimization as outcomes of physical punishment. In addition, the study expands on the concept of “victim personality” by examining the mediating role of depressive symptoms. Methodologically, the study is an example of how the statistical software SPSS can be used for multiple mediation and conditional process analysis as an alternative to SEM analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]